President Mahmoud Abbas Thursday received Jared Kushner, senior advisor to US President Donald Trump, at his Ramallah headquarters.

Kusher also met with with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, prior to his talks with Abbas, with the aim to to jumpstart moribund peace talks.

“We highly appreciate President Trump’s efforts to strike a historical peace deal, a statement he repeated more than one time during our meetings in Washington, Riyadh and Bethlehem,” Abbas said at the start of his meeting with the Kushner.

"We know that this delegation is working for peace, and we are working with it to achieve what President Trump has called a peace deal. We know that things are difficult and complicated, but there is nothing impossible with good efforts," he said.

Meanwhile, Kushner stressed that Trump was very optimistic about the chances of reaching a peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians, saying the president is striving to create a better future for both people.

While Palestinians were initially optimistic with the election of Trump, there has been a growing sense of impatience with what they say is a failure by the US president to establish foundations for peace.

Specifically, they are seeking a halt in Israeli settlement construction on occupied lands, and a US commitment to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state as part of a peace deal with Israel.

"If the US team doesn't bring answers to our questions this time, we are going to look into our options because the status quo is not working for our interests," Ahmad Majdalani, an aide to Abbas, said prior to the Palestinian leader's meeting with Kushner.

In a statement released Thursday night, the White House said the meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the U.S. delegation led by Jared Kushner was "productive."

The short statement also said that the meeting "focused on how to begin substantive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks" and that "both sides agreed to continue with the U.S.-led conversations as the best way to reach a comprehensive peace deal."