WASHINGTON: The United States called Israeli settlement building “a problem” on Tuesday as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice began fresh talks in her uphill push for an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal this year.

The State Department voiced displeasure at Israel’s latest plans to build new Jewish settlements after Rice met Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak for wide-ranging discussions that also covered Iran and its suspected pursuit of nuclear arms.

Speaking to reporters, Barak said there was still time for “accelerated sanctions” to persuade Iran to abandon its nuclear programme but, in an allusion to the possibility of a military strike, said “no option could be removed from the table.”

Rice met Barak at the start of two days of talks that will include separate, and joint, meetings with former Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, the two sides’ top peace negotiators.

Negotiations have so far produced no tangible progress and there is deep skepticism among Israelis, Palestinians and analysts that US President George Bush can meet his goal of reaching a comprehensive peace agreement this year.—Reuters