The German Foreign Minister, Joschka Fischer, has urged both Israel and the Palestinians to abandon unilateral actions which could jeopardise the Middle East peace process.

Mr Fischer who handles European Union foreign policy issues while Germany holds the rotating EU presidency was speaking after a meeting in Bonn with the Israeli Foreign Minister, Ariel Sharon.

Mr Fischer did not specifically refer to Yasser Arafat's proposal to declare a Palestinian state in May.

Mr Sharon again warned that Israel would react immediately if a state were declared.

He called on the European Union to help achieve security in the Middle East.