Washington: US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Friday sought to inject urgency into Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, warning the negotiations may be "the last chance for a very long time" to reach an agreement.
In a joint interview with Israeli and Palestinian television broadcasters a day after she presided over the launch of the first direct talks in two years, Clinton said the rise of Iranian-backed extremist ideology in the Middle East is a major reason why time is short.
Iran's suspected nuclear ambitions have surfaced as a new motivating factor for a Mideast resolution. There have been growing Israeli warnings that the nation might take military steps to blunt Iran's nuclear programme, and even some of Israel's Arab neighbours have shown concerns.
The administration believes that a successful Mideast peace deal would limit Iran's ability to use Mideast tensions to justify its behaviour.
