US President Donald Trump today welcomed his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas, to the White House at a first meeting to prepare for a possible reopening of peace talks.
Twenty-one months after the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the president of the Palestinian Authority was personally welcomed by the head of the United States as soon as he was disembarked from his vehicle.
"I hope something wonderful can happen between the Palestinians and Israel," said the Republican president just after the Oval Office meeting began.
For his part, Mahmoud Abbas chose not to make any statements at the start of the talks.