Tokyo: Japan on Wednesday urged Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to resume peace talks with Israel, offering him aid amounting to USD 100 million this fiscal year, the government said.
Japan is one of the top donors for the Palestinian territories, providing more than USD one billion in aid since 1993.
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan met Fayyad in Tokyo and "strongly urged the peace negotiations to resume between the Palestinians and Israel", the government said in a statement.
Kan told the visiting Palestinian Premier that Japan`s aid for the territories` nation-building efforts will be worth about USD 100 million this financial year, the statement said.
Direct peace talks between the two sides remain stalled because of Israeli settlement activity on the West Bank.
In response, Fayyad said the Palestinians will engage in the peace negotiations, the statement said, without elaborating further.
PTI
