Mitchell said that in Ramallah, he would ask Palestinian leaders "to take steps to expand and improve their security, to take ac

              Defense Minister Ehud Barak met US Mideast envoy George Mitchell in Tel Aviv on Sunday, telling reporters that Israel was prepared to take every reasonable step in order to make peace with the Palestinians. "I can tell you that we here are ready to take whatever reasonable effort [is required] to make it happen (regional peace) ... and of course, we bear in mind our vital interests, but we understand there are needs of other partners as well," he said after meeting Mitchell. Downplaying the reported tensions between Washington and Jerusalem on the settlement issue, Mitchell described the differences with Israel as "discussions among friends," and "not disputes among adversaries." He said a "wide range of issues" were being addressed, but didn't announce any breakthroughs. He said that all the discussions "are intended to help what we share in common: a desire for comprehensive peace in the Middle East and that includes Israel and Palestine, Israel and Syria, Israel and Lebanon and normal relations with all countries in the region." "That is Obama's personal objective vision and that is what he is asking to achieve," he stressed. The Mideast envoy said he had been urging Arab leaders "to take steps towards normalization as gestures of their own to demonstrate that everyone in the region shares the vision of comprehensive peace that we share." Mitchell said that in Ramallah, he would ask Palestinian leaders "to take steps to expand and improve their security, to take actions against incitement and to refrain from any words or deeds that make the prospect of successful negotiations more difficult." He thanked Israel for the measures taken to ease Palestinian movement in the West Bank, adding that American commitment to Israel's security was "unshakable and will not change.(22,06)