Malta wants "a sustainable and final peace agreement" to be reached between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told his Palestinian counterpart this morning.

Dr Muscat spoke at length about the peace process with Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah, who signalled his country's willingness to reach a deal.

Direct talks between Israeli and Palestinian delegations started in July after a hiatus of three years but little is known about the negotiations after both sides agreed that only the US should speak. The US gave the two sides nine months to work out their differences and continuous meetings have been held in Jerusalem and Ramallah.

During a press briefing after meeting Mr Hamdallah, Dr Muscat said it was Malta's natural vocation to serve as a bridge for both Israel and Palestine in dealings with the EU.

"We sense there is realistic optimism on both sides that a peace deal is possible but there is also fear that something may go wrong at the end of the day," Dr Muscat said, adding his message was clear to both sides that Malta wanted any agreement to be a final one.

Mr Hamdallah said the Palestinians were "serious" about reaching a final deal within the nine-month timeframe, when asked how confident he was about the success of negotiations. "I hope the Israelis are serious as well."