The European Union's foreign policy chief says an informal dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians is not at a dead end.

Catherine Ashton says Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is "thinking carefully" about his next moves in the dialogue that began in Jordan earlier this month. She says he wants to consult on his options with the Arab League.

Ashton spoke after meeting with Abbas in Amman Thursday, January 26. Abbas was reported Wednesday as saying the talks had stopped.

Ashton also says that after meeting with Israelis in the past few days, she remains hopeful that "with goodwill, they can continue to talk."

She says Abbas hopes Israel would make gestures on halting Jewish settlement construction and demarcating the border for of a future Palestinian state, as incentives to restart dialogue, AP reported.