British foreign secretary says there is no 'plan B' and warns of consequences of failure of US mission to revive peace process

William Hague visits E1, the site of a proposed Israeli settlement, during a brief trip to Jerusalem and Ramallah. Photograph: Mahmoud illean/Demotix/Corbis
The British foreign secretary, William Hague, has warned of the risks of failure of the US-sponsored mission to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, suggesting that it was the last attempt possible at reaching a two-state solution to the conflict and there was no realistic "plan B".

On the second day of his brief trip to Jerusalem and Ramallah, Hague told reporters that the consequences of failure would be very severe, and the chances of a Palestinian state were slipping away.

The US secretary of state John Kerry's drive to restart talks was "a moment of opportunity that won't easily come round again," Hague said. He later repeated the point: "If this doesn't work, there is not going to be another moment in American diplomacy that is more committed and energetic to bring about negotiations. So it's very important – in weeks, not months – to make the most of this opportunity."

Three times during a 20-minute press conference, Hague said "bold leadership" was required on both sides for Kerry's mission to succeed. Many western diplomats are sceptical about the Israelis' frequently stated commitment to resume talks, given their unwillingness to curb the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which are seen as an impediment to peace talks by most of the international community.

"The two-state solution is slipping away, it doesn't have much longer to go. We never like to say it's the last attempt at anything, but we're getting near the last attempt at this," Hague said. "It is vital for all sides to make the necessary compromises for negotiations towards [a two-state solution] to succeed."

Hague was reluctant to be drawn on what diplomatic alternatives there were in the event of Kerry's failure to bring the two sides back to negotiations. "I don't think it's helpful to speculate publicly about plan Bs, except to say there isn't any plan B that comes anywhere near to plan A. There isn't a plan B that resolves the problem."

Kerry has produced no tangible results so far, despite four visits to Jerusalem and Ramallah in two months as well as numerous high-level meetings elsewhere. Progress was hard to measure, Hague said, but he added: "I don't think we're in a position to say that necessary compromises have already been made, but I think minds are being concentrated. But unless the bold leadership is there to make the most of this opportunity, then we face a truly bleak situation in the Middle East."

He said both the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, were "intensively engaged" with the Kerry mission, but faced immense pressures. "We're getting nearer to everyone having to decide if they're really serious about this. That moment is quite close."

Israel had lost support in Britain and Europe as a result of its settlement activity, Hague said. However, "boycotts and delegitimisation" were not the answer.

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