Middle East talks begin in Washington

The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton (L), hosts Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu (R), US special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell (C-L), and president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas (C-R), in direct talks aimed at peace in the Middle East, at the State Department in Washington Photograph: Jason Reed/EPA

Netanyahu (R) and Abbas prepare to begin the talks Photograph: Jason Reed/EPA

Israelis in an appliance shop in Mevesseret Zion, just outside Jerusalem, are more interested in selling and buying televisions than in watching the proceedings in Washington Photograph: Jim Hollander/EPA

Palestinian labourers work at the site of a new neighbourhood in the Jewish settlement of Tekoa in the West Bank, south of Bethlehem, as negotiators start the new round of peace talks Photograph: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images

A Palestinian labourer prays as he takes a break from work Photograph: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images

The peace talks get under way Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA

Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, Netanyahu, US president, Barack Obama, Abbas and Jordan's King Abdullah II walk to East Room of the White House before making statements Photograph: Charles Dharapak/AP

Obama speaks as he is joined by the four leaders taking part in the Middle East peace talks in the East Room at the White House Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Netanyahu says he is ready for a peace agreement and wants to meet the Palestinian president every two weeks to push it forward. But there remains debate as to whether he is serious or seeking to stave off pressure from the US while consolidating Israel’s hold on large parts of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by further entrenching and expanding Jewish settlements. Netanyahu is under pressure from the hard right within his coalition cabinet not to give ground on the settlements or East Jerusalem. It is likely that if he does make the concessions necessary for an agreement that his government will collapse and that he will either have to form new alliances or call an election, so he will want to ensure that any agreement is palatable to a clear majority of Israelis Photograph: Pool/Getty Images

Abbas has come to Washington without backing for the talks from his own political organisation, the Palestine Liberation Organisation, and amid considerable scepticism among a public that fears Israel intends to draw out the talks while continuing to expand Jewish settlements in the occupied territories Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP

Abbas is relying on the Americans to pressure Israel, given his own politically weak position. He is also looking to support from the rest of the Arab world to ensure that he is not accused of betraying the Palestinian cause with the inevitable compromises he will have to make in reaching an agreement Photograph: Ron Sachs /EPA

Abbas shakes hands with Netanyahu during an East Room statement at the White House Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Former British prime minister Tony Blair was at the opening of the talks as the envoy of the Middle East quartet of the US, EU, UN and Russia. Blair’s principal task has been to help to knock Palestinian institutions in to shape, particularly the security forces, as a means of furthering Palestinian demands for a state. His supporters say he has played an important role in moving the Palestinians away from violent confrontation with Israel. His detractors, including some in the Palestinian leadership, say he is too closely aligned with Israel, particularly its demands for security control over a Palestinian state Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

The Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, is broadly behind Abbas but with one eye on ensuring that Hamas does not rise to power in an independent Palestine. He regards the Islamist group as a threat to Egypt and has joined Israel in blockading Gaza to try and topple it from power in the enclave. Mubarak is also a key player in bringing other Arab nations on board to support any deal Photograph: Ron Sachs /EPA

The king of Jordan, King Abdullah II, which is home to a substantial number of Palestinian refugees, has been at the forefront of American efforts to win support from the rest of the Arab world for Obama’s initiative. Abbas met the king, whom he regards as a key ally, in Amman at the weekend to discuss the approach to the talks with Israel. King Abdullah also met with the Israeli defence minister, Ehud Barak, and afterwards described an Israeli-Palestinian peace settlement as the key to security in the region Photograph: Susan Walsh/AP