A young rock thrower. A report by the Middle East Quartet cites the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian violence as one of the main impediments of peace. Photo: Justin McIntosh.

JNS.org – A long-awaited report by the Middle East Quartet cites the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian violence, Israeli settlement expansion as well as the chaotic situation in Gaza as the main impediments of peace, according to the United Nations special envoy for the Middle East.

“These negative trends can and must be urgently reversed in order to advance the two-state solution on the ground,” U.N. Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov told the United Nations Security Council at a briefing on Thursday.

The report by the Middle East Quartet—the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations—is seeking to be a catalyst in resuming Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. It is expected to be released on Friday after months of delay.

“The main objective of this report is not about assigning blame,” Mladenov told the Security Council. “It focuses on the major threats to achieving a negotiated peace and offers recommendations [for both sides] on the way forward.”

If the U.N. Security Council endorses the report’s recommendations, many Israeli officials and experts say a diplomatic move could strongly pressure Israeli foreign policy.