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Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/09/22/us.mideast/
Obama Drops Demand that Israel Freeze Settlements
[CNN] Elise Labott - Meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Palestinian Chairman Abbas Tuesday in New York, President Obama dropped a demand for an Israeli settlement freeze, saying that Israel has had meaningful discussions about "restraining" settlement activity. "Obama told Abbas that he couldn't get the settlement freeze and promised to keep trying, but that it shouldn't be a condition for talks and it was time to move on," one Palestinian aide to Abbas said. Several U.S. officials said that Obama told Abbas that although the U.S. believes a settlement freeze would create a better atmosphere for talks to begin, the lack of one should not be used as an excuse not to talk. A senior Israeli diplomat said Israel agreed to not building any new settlements, no outward expansion of existing growth and to only build for "natural" growth within existing settlements.