THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release  September 22, 2009

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

AT BEGINNING OF TRILATERAL MEETING

WITH ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU AND

PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRESIDENT ABBAS

Waldorf Astoria Hotel

New York, New York

12:26 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Please be seated, members of the delegations.

I have just concluded frank and productive bilateral meetings with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas.  And I want to thank them both for appearing here today.  I am now looking forward to this opportunity to hold the first meeting among the three of us since we took office.

As I said throughout my campaign and at the beginning of my administration, the United States is committed to a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.  That includes a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that results in two states, Israel and Palestine, in which both the Israeli people and the Palestinian people can live in peace and security and realize their aspirations for a better life for their children.

That is why my Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and my Special Envoy George Mitchell have worked tirelessly to create the context for permanent status negotiations.  And we have made progress since I took office in January and since Israelis -- Israel's government took office in April.  But we still have much further to go.