 Middle East nations urged Israel and Palestinian leaders on Tuesday to end their conflict for the sake of peace in the region while Malaysia called for greater efforts to disassociate Islam and Muslims from terrorism, at the inaugural Asia-Middle East dialogue in Singapore. Ministers and officials from around 40 nations and the Palestinian authority discussed terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, energy policies and trade relations on the second day of the three-day session. "Any condition of tension and instability in any region of the world nowadays reflects negatively on other regions and hinder development efforts," said Prince Turki bin Muhammad Saud Al-Kabir, Saudi Arabia's deputy minister for political affairs. "The Arab-Israeli conflict remains an obstacle to achieving the desired development goals (in the Middle East)." Jordan's King Abdullah, like Turki, said conflict resolution between Israel and the Palestinians would contribute to wider security in the region. |