UNITED NATIONS, May 18 (Xinhuanet) -- The people of the Middle East were now approaching a number of important turning points, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast told the Security Council on Wednesday, calling for continuous dialogue and coordination between Israel and Palestine.

    Reporting on the Quartet (European Union, Russian Federation, United States, United Nations) meeting in Moscow last Monday, he said the discussion had focused on how best to help the parties maintain the momentum at "this fragile moment of opportunity."

    Both parties were reminded of the need to avoid unilateral actions that might prejudge final status issues, and urged to implement their obligations under the Road Map, he said.

    Prendergast stressed the importance of dialogue and coordination between Israel and Palestine, saying the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the northern West Bank marked an important landmark in Israeli-Palestinian relations.

    "The evacuation of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory set an important precedent," he said. "Continued bilateral coordination would be one way to ensure that disengagement proceeded successfully and contributed to the momentum for peace."

    The Israeli pullout should be seen as a highly significant step along the road towards realizing the vision of two States, Israel and a sovereign, viable, and contiguous Palestine, living side by side in peace and security, Prendergast said.

    He noted that the level of violence between Palestinians and Israelis still remained far below that which had prevailed before the Sharm el-Sheikh summit.

    However, he was concerned by reports of a slow but steady increase in violent incidents, compounding a corresponding deterioration in trust and confidence between the two sides.

    He also pointed out that despite the relative calm and slight improvement in terms of closure conditions over the past two months, there had been little change in the dire Palestinian economic situation.

    "It is our sincere hope that recent events in the region will be remembered as a new start on the road towards peace, rather than slide back into conflict and violent confrontation", he concluded. Enditem