3 September 2010 Last updated at 06:43 ET

World's press guarded as Middle East peace talks begin

The opening day of US-brokered peace talks between Israel and Palestinian negotiators has been met with a mixed response from the world's media.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders meet in Washington for the first direct peace talks in nearly two years

Israel's press was cautiously optimistic that an agreement could be reached, but there was an air of scepticism as to whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was entirely sincere in his motives.

Pessimism surrounded the Palestinian press, particularly in the wake of the killing of four Israeli settlers in the West Bank on 31 August.

Elsewhere, the world's media noted the fragility of the talks, hoping that pessimism does not spread to the negotiators themselves.

Israeli press

NAHUM BARNEA IN YEDIOT AHARANOT

What was presented the day before yesterday and yesterday in Washington is theatre. If this is a show, Netanyahu played it very well.

BEN KASPIT IN MA'ARIV

Has Netanyahu matured for an historic move and crossed the Rubicon? Up to the moment he delivered his speech in Washington, many of the assessors thought that Netanyahu was pretending. But had Netanyahu delivered the speech from his heart?

ALUF BENN IN HA'ARETZ

This week Netanyahu presented a new message: "Sovereignty in return for security." The opening speeches at the Washington summit provide a small crack for optimism.

Editorial in the Jerusalem Post

Until Israelis can be assured that their negotiating partner is fighting terror - not committing it, fostering it, or legitimising it as a means of obtaining political objectives - there will not be peace.

Palestinian press

EDITORIAL IN AL-QUDS

Netanyahu tried to exploit the incidents (in which Israeli settlers were attacked) to convince the international community that his security priorities should be on top of the agenda. Consequently, such operations can only weaken the Palestinians in the negotiations.

SAMIH SHUBAYB IN AL-AYYAM

By carrying out an attack, and similar attacks that it will carry out in the future, Hamas wanted to undermine the negotiations and weaken the Palestinian negotiators instead of strengthening them.

ADIL ABD-AL-RAHMAN IN AL-HAYAT AL-JADIDAH

Hamas's contradictory positions reflect its confusion and the crisis it is going through. Its leadership should stop playing around with the future of the people and stop carrying out military and non-military operations that damage the higher interests of the people.

HUSAM AL-DAJANI IN FILASTIN ONLINE

Via its two operations, Hamas was able to send multiple messages and was able to create an earthquake. I also believe that Israel will not retaliate for these operations since it is the only party benefiting from the negotiations.

Arabic press

EDITORIAL IN EGYPT'S AL-AHRAM

Israel will be very mistaken if it insists on believing that the international situation is in its favour.

MUHAMMAD SHAWAHIN IN JORDAN'S AL-RA'Y

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas is not to be blamed for entering into direct negotiations. Protecting the current gains, even if they are few, is better than nothing. The man needs physical and moral support from, first, his people and, second, Arab and friendly peoples.

SUBHI ZU'AYTIR IN SAUDI ARABIA'S AL-WATAN

Anyone who listens to Benjamin Netanyahu while speaking about his favours on peace in the region, will think that he is listening to a preacher who spent a considerable part of his life in prison and at the bureaus of international organisations to achieve peoples' peace.

ADNAN ALI IN SYRIA'S AL-THAWRAH

Any negotiations held while settlement building continues would turn into a well-prepared trap for the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian land will continue to be eaten up while the cause will enter into a maze of Israeli tricks and marathon negotiations that are governed by no rules and lead to nowhere.

RAFIQ KHURI IN LEBANON'S AL-ANWAR

Failure this time will definitely lead to a stage of violence. There are many scenarios starting from reviving resistance and ensuring its Arab and Islamic depth going through repeating past experience up to total war.

EDITORIAL IN DUBAI'S GULF NEWS

America's reputation as a peace broker is at stake and the Obama administration will suffer both domestically and internationally if the talks turn out to be a failure. The onus is on Obama to set the tone from the beginning and stand up against Israeli intransigence and arrogance.

Worldwide reaction

ZHANG XIAODONG IN CHINA DAILY

The resumption of the peace talks is only the first step of a long march... prospects for peace are still dim, and the talks may not bear fruit.

AN HUIHOU IN SHANGHAI'S LIBERATION DAILY

So why is the Obama administration vigorously restoring direct negotiations between Palestine and Israel? Like the withdrawal of combat troops from Iraq, it is currently in order to gain a good impression among voters and to strive for a Democrat victory in the elections.

SERGEY STROKAN IN RUSSIA'S KOMMERSANT

Despite the positive attitude, observers' assessment of the chances that talks will succeed remains moderate.

VASILIY ALEKSANDROV IN RUSSIA'S IZVESTIYA

In Palestine, people think talks with Israeli premier are "a shameful spectacle". The peace process will have to pass a strength test as early as the next few days.

EDITORIAL IN OUEST-FRANCE

To resign oneself to pessimism is quite simply not an option for the Palestinians, for Israel or for the United States. And Europe? It is wrong to be angry about its absence from the negotiation table.

EDITORIAL IN SPAIN'S LA RAZON

If the Palestinians want peace, they must demonstrate it through deeds and those can only come from a relentless combat against the terrorists - which today appears to be a chimera.

BBC Monitoring selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.