SOFIA:  Direct talks between the Palestinians and the Israelis would make no sense without the participation of the international community, Palestinian foreign minister Riyad Al-Maliki said on Wednesday.

"We have always said we need the presence of a third party. Without a third party intervention, a third party presence, this is a waste of time," Maliki said on the sidelines of an official visit to Bulgaria by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.

Palestinians and Israelis have been trying to resolve their conflict via direct talks since 1991 but have "produced absolutely nothing," Maliki said.

"Before we re-engage again, we have to draw lessons," he said.

Maliki criticised the international community saying it had "pushed us -- Palestinians and Israelis -- to talk in a room and closed the room."

The "occupier and occupied" sitting together in the same room "can`t be the best atmosphere, a conducive atmosphere for any kind of positive outcome. There is no parity at all," the minister said.

"We, the Palestinians, we do need a third party presence," he continued.

"Not only to sit and to watch us, but to intervene, to be a catalyst, in order to help bridging the gaps, the positions between the two sides, building proposals, and really helping the two sides moving in the right direction," Maliki said.

The Palestinians froze direct negotiations in December 2008, when Israel launched a deadly offensive against Gaza to halt rocket attacks.

US President Barack Obama expressed hope last week that the two sides would return to direct peace talks before end-September.

Washington`s Middle East envoy George Mitchell has mediated several rounds of so-called "proximity" talks or indirect talks since May, but without visible signs of progress.

BDST: 1455 HRS, July 14, 2010