Visiting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday asked Israel to make "hard decisions" in order to achieve peace in the Middle East. (Photo: Xinhua/AFP)

(Photo: Xinhua/AFP)

    JERUSALEM, Feb. 6 (Xinhuanet) -- Visiting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday asked Israel to make "hard decisions" for peace as she began a renewed US diplomatic push in the Middle East ahead of a historic summit between Israel and the Palestinians.

    "We will ask of our partners and our friends in Israel that Israel continues to make the hard decisions that must be taken in order to promote peace and ... the emergence of a democratic Palestinian state," Rice said before meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.

    "This is a time of optimism because fundamental changes are underway in the Middle East as a whole," she added.

    Rice urged both Israel and the Palestinians to live up to their promises.

    "This is a hopeful time, but it is a time also of great responsibility for all of us to make certain that we act on the words that we speak," she said before meeting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

    Sharon said he believed Rice's visit "will contribute to the peace process that we so much want to advance."

    According to US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, during their 90-minute dinner meeting on Sunday, Rice and Sharon discussed the initial steps from the new Palestinian government toend violence, and Israel's response.

    Rice also presented Sharon "a possible security mechanism" to help Palestinians build effective security forces that fight terrorism and help Palestinians and Israelis in cooperating to endthe violence, said Boucher.

    On Monday, Rice will head for the West Bank city of Ramallah to meet Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei.

    Rice's trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories came ahead of a historic summit between Sharon and Abbas due in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh Tuesday.

    The summit will also be attended by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan's King Abdullah II.

    Meanwhile, European Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner arrived in Cairo on Sunday for a six-day tour aimed at helping revive the Mideast peace process.

    While in Egypt, Ferrero-Waldner will hold talks with Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazef and Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit on "EU-Egypt relations and the situation in the Middle East. "

    The EU official will later travel to Israel and the Palestinianterritories for talks with Sharon and Abbas.

    The EU, together with the United States, the United Nations and Russia, has been trying to push for implementation of the roadmap peace plan aimed at the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.

    Tuesday's summit is set to finalize a series of agreements on issues such as the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel and the transfer of security control in certain cities in the West Bank.

    The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Islamic Jihad (Holy War) announced Sunday that the release of Palestinian prisoners is essential to the success of the four-way summit in Egypt.

    The two groups said in statements that one of the conditions tomake the summit successful is the release of Palestinian prisoner sheld in Israeli jails.

    Khaled el Batsh, a senior Islamic Jihad leader, said that the Palestinians are not expecting Israel to give amnesty to some prisoners, but "our demand is the release of all prisoners without discrimination."

    Israel has so far only agreed to free some 900 Palestinian prisoners but only those who have not been involved in killing Israelis.

    Moreover, Sharon on Sunday denied that Israel will release two leaders of the Popular Front For the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)accused of killing then Israeli tourism minister Rehbaam Zaevi three years ago.

    Ahmad Saadat and Emad Al-Ghelma were arrested and detained in aprison in the West Bank city of Jericho under the US and British supervision, on charges of planning and participating in the killing of Zaevi.

    Sharon's denial came after Israeli sources said Israel has the intention to set free the two. Enditem