Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom met with Palestinian Economic Minister Bassem Khoury in Jerusalem on Wednesday for the highest level talks between Israeli and Palestinian officials in half a year, Haaretz reported.
The meeting was the first between an Israeli and Palestinian Authority minister since Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu's government took office in March. Until Wednesday, the Palestinian ministers had boycotted their Israeli counterparts.
During the talks, which were held at the King David Hotel, the ministers discussed economic proposals to improve life for the Palestinians. Officials said the agenda included proposals to ease restrictions on the entry of Palestinian businesspeople and VIPs to Israel.
Shalom and Khoury first met for a tête-à-tête, after which they held a meeting with other officials present.
They were to discuss joint industrial parks meant to further what Netanyahu has termed an economic peace