BRUSSELS, January 23, 2007 (WAFA) - Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa on Monday urged for more active role of the Quartet in the Middle East crisis, affirming that the Arabs could not begin peace talks with the Israelis from square one.

Moussa's statements came during a lecture in the Belgium Royal Institute for international Relations in Brussels.

Moussa said that the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pledged that the Quartet, at its upcoming meeting, would "prepare the atmosphere" for a meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. "It will be a good thing if something can be accomplished," he said.

"The Arab nation has listened to too much rhetoric from the Quartet but this has not been translated into something concrete," he said, adding that time is opportune to achieve a comprehensive solution to the Middle East crisis.

The Quartet, that comprises the US, the United Nations, Russia and the European Union, has repeatedly called for establishing an independent Palestinian state living side by side with Israel.

A.D (01:30P) (23:30GMT)