After the nuclear summit came to a close, Obama delivered a statement on the status of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Obama said he is frustrated by the slow pace of negotiations, but appeared to pin equal blame on both sides for the impasse.

President Obama: “I know that even if we are applying all of our political capital to that issue, the Israeli people, through their government, and the Palestinian people, through the Palestinian Authority, as well as other Arab states, may say to themselves, we are not prepared to resolve this — these issues, no matter how much pressure the United States brings to bear. And the truth is, in some of these conflicts, the United States can’t impose solutions unless the participants in these conflicts are willing to break out of old patterns of antagonism.”

Obama made no mention of Israel’s refusal to halt settlement construction in occupied East Jerusalem. The Obama administration has said it opposes the settlements, but has refused to propose cutting any of the billions of dollars in annual US aid to Israel.