[Anna Karagiannopoulou]: The American Secretary of State, John Kerry, is undertaking his sixth trip to the Middle East, which will focus on the latest developments in Egypt as well as efforts to find a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Kerry returns to the Middle East after talks in the region last month, which he stated produced real progress, and believes that with a little more work, direct talks between Israelis and Palestinians could begin. The current peace efforts in the Middle East are based on an initiative of the Arab League, which includes land swaps so that Israel can maintain some of its settlements in the West Bank. The involvement of the International Community in this process is of critical importance, according to Israel’s Justice Minister, Tzipi Livni. [Tzipi Livni]: I consider the role of the International Community in the peace process in the Middle East extremely important. I hope that direct talks between the sides will resume, but the international contribution is very significant for us. [Anna Karagiannopoulou]: Finding solutions based on the idea of two states for two peoples is a priority for President Obama, says Professor Akbar Ahmed of the American University here in Washington. [Akbar Ahmed]: In his second term, a president can act more boldly because he thinks about his legacy. He is now working with Mr. Kerry, who is a thoughtful person who understands the importance of a peace agreement between Israel and Palestinians. [Anna Karagiannopoulou]: This latest peace effort is being made while the Obama administration tries to manage the expectations arising from the so-called Arab Spring, says the former US Ambassador to Israel, Daniel Kurtzer. [Daniel Kurtzer]: This is a long-standing conflict that has so far exceeded everyone’s ability to resolve. However, it has significantly affected American interests. The US is part of the problem, many Arabs believe. If John Kerry succeeds in restarting the talks, this will also help the broader goals of American foreign policy, Mr. Kurtzer noted. I believe that such an achievement would dissipate the anger of the Arabs and give us the opportunity to do what needs to be done on other pressing issues, such as Egypt and Syria. [Anna Karagiannopoulou]: The main issues that will occupy the contacts of the American Secretary of State with senior officials of the Arab League will be precisely these, namely the worsening situation in Syria and Egypt. Anna Karagiannopoulou, VOA, Washington.