President Mahmoud Abbas with US senior advisor Jared Kushner in Ramallah. (WAFA photo/Usama Falah)

RAMALLAH, August 24, 2017 (WAFA) – President Mahmoud Abbas Thursday received Jared Kushner, senior advisor to US President Donald Trump, at his Ramallah headquarters and reiterated his appreciation to Trump’s efforts to revive peace between the Palestinians and Israelis.

 “We highly appreciate President Trump’s efforts to strike a historical peace deal, a statement he repeated more than one time during our meetings in Washington, Riyadh and Bethlehem,” Abbas said at the start of his meeting with the Kushner.

"We know that this delegation is working for peace, and we are working with it to achieve what President Trump has called a peace deal. We know that things are difficult and complicated, but there is nothing impossible with good efforts," he said.

Kushner also delivered a message from Trump to Abbas. Trump sent his best regards and said he is very optimistic about peace prospects, said Kushner.

“[Trump] dispatched us from Washington to talk today about a topic that is very important to him which is peaceful relations between the countries in the whole region.”

He said Trump is very optimistic and hopeful for a better future for all Palestinian people and Israeli people. “Hopefully they’ll be able to work together and live together for many years and have a much better lives,” Trump said.

Kushner added that Trump is very hopeful and very appreciative of all the efforts President Abbas has made to date and appreciative of the discussions and of the relationship.

Kushner, who is heading a delegation that includes special US peace envoy Jason Greenblatt and Dina Powell, deputy US National Security Advisor, earlier met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

M.H./M.K.