US envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell (L) meets with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo yesterday. Mitchell met Mubarak on the latest leg of a regional tour aimed at reviving stalled Middle East peace talks.Photo: AFP

Washington hopes Iran will respond to overtures on its nuclear drive by September, Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Monday amid a US push to jumpstart stalled Middle East peacemaking.
Gates, one of three top US officials in the region this week, said on a visit to Jerusalem that Israel's long-term security and regional stability were ultimately dependent on a "sustainable comprehensive Middle East peace."
"The president is certainly anticipating or hoping for some kind of a response (from Iran) this fall, perhaps by the time of the UN General Assembly" which opens in September, Gates said at a press conference with Israeli counterpart Ehud Barak.
Washington and Israel, widely considered the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear armed state, suspect Iran is trying to build atomic weapons under the guise of a civilian nuclear programme, a charge Tehran denies.
"Israel remains in its basic position that no options should be removed from the table, despite the fact that at this stage a priority should be given still to diplomacy and sanctions," Barak said.
US President Barack Obama said in May after meeting Israel's hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he would assess whether Iran was serious about nuclear talks by the end of this year.
Mitchell is later due to visit the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, before meeting Netanyahu on Tuesday.
US Middle East envoy George Mitchell, meanwhile, called on Arab states to fully normalise relations with Israel after he met Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo to push for a comprehensive peace.
"By comprehensive I mean peace between Israel and Palestinians, between Israel and Syria, between Israel and Lebanon and the full normalisation of relations between Israel and the countries of the region," he said.
"We're not asking anyone to achieve full normalisation at this time, we recognise that will come further down the road in this process."