Obama, Mideast Leaders to Meet

President Obama certainly charmed reluctant leaders in Latin America, but he might be pushing his luck with this latest move: He’s invited the leaders of Israel, Egypt, and the Palestinian territories to meet in early June in Washington and talk peace. There’s no sign the Arab and Israeli leaders will meet directly, of course. Obama has pledged to address the conflict in the region and combat the “cynicism” surrounding the peace efforts. “What we want to do is to step back from the abyss, to say, as hard as it is, as difficult as it may be, the prospect of peace still exists, but it’s going to require some hard choices,” he said. The U.S. supports a two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine coexisting as independent nations.