U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is headed to the Middle East on his third trip there in just two weeks in a fresh effort to unlock long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Kerry departs Saturday for Istanbul, the first leg of a six-nation trip that will see him travel on to Europe and East Asia.

Top US diplomat John Kerry on Tuesday wrapped up three days of "very constructive" talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, pledging new efforts to help the West Bank economy as he sought to bring the sides back to the table. Speaking to reporters shortly before leaving for London, a cautious Kerry said it was more important to find ways of resuming the long-frozen negotiations correctly rather than "quickly." On another key Middle East conflict, he said he would meet members of Syria's opposition in London where he was to attend a summit of G8 foreign ministers.

Top US diplomat John Kerry met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday at the tail end of three days of talks to piece together a plan for resuming Middle East peace negotiations. During the visit, his second trip to the region in as many weeks, Kerry said he was pursuing a "quiet strategy" for ending decades of mistrust between the two sides, who have not met for direct talks since September 2010.

By Arshad Mohammed and Kiyoshi Takenaka TOKYO (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday stressed the United States is willing to engage with North Korea as long as it takes steps to give up nuclear weapons. He also vowed Washington would protect its Asian allies against any provocative acts by the North, but said it wants a peaceful solution to rising tensions in the region.