U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Paris where he will meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss ongoing peace talks with Israel.
The meeting, scheduled for Wednesday evening, is Kerry's latest effort to advance Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, including trying to craft a framework for what an eventual peace agreement would look like.
Israeli army radio reports that Kerry is expected to request that Israel implement a partial freeze on construction of new settlements outside certain West Bank areas.
It says that part of the framework Kerry is working on would allow talks to be extended beyond an April deadline until the end of the year.
The renewed talks have made little progress since the two sides agreed to re-open the process last July after a three-year break.
During initial meetings, Israel agreed to a prisoner release, while the Palestinians dropped their demand for Israel to stop settlement construction before negotiations continue.
Kerry was also due to meet separately Wednesday with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh.
He traveled to France from Tunisia, where he made a stop Tuesday to praise progress in the country where the Arab Spring began three years ago.
Kerry met in Tunis with President Moncef Marzouki, telling him the United States is "very impressed by the steps that you have been taking, by the rational thoughtful approach to the transition."
Kerry said Tunisia's new constitution, which was ratified in January, can serve as a model for others in the region. He described the document as "rooted in democratic principles -- equality, freedom, security, economic opportunity, and the rule of law."
Tunisia's new constitution sets out to make the country a democracy not based on Islamic law. But some government opponents say the constitution does not do enough to protect women's rights.
The meeting, scheduled for Wednesday evening, is Kerry's latest effort to advance Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, including trying to craft a framework for what an eventual peace agreement would look like.
Israeli army radio reports that Kerry is expected to request that Israel implement a partial freeze on construction of new settlements outside certain West Bank areas.
It says that part of the framework Kerry is working on would allow talks to be extended beyond an April deadline until the end of the year.
The renewed talks have made little progress since the two sides agreed to re-open the process last July after a three-year break.
During initial meetings, Israel agreed to a prisoner release, while the Palestinians dropped their demand for Israel to stop settlement construction before negotiations continue.
Kerry was also due to meet separately Wednesday with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh.
He traveled to France from Tunisia, where he made a stop Tuesday to praise progress in the country where the Arab Spring began three years ago.
Kerry met in Tunis with President Moncef Marzouki, telling him the United States is "very impressed by the steps that you have been taking, by the rational thoughtful approach to the transition."
Kerry said Tunisia's new constitution, which was ratified in January, can serve as a model for others in the region. He described the document as "rooted in democratic principles -- equality, freedom, security, economic opportunity, and the rule of law."
Tunisia's new constitution sets out to make the country a democracy not based on Islamic law. But some government opponents say the constitution does not do enough to protect women's rights.