JERUSALEM, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Israeli candidate for prime minister Benny Gantz met Monday with U.S. Middle East Envoy Jason Greenblatt in Tel Aviv as Israel is in a post-election deadlock to build a unity government.
Gantz, leader of the centrist Blue and White party, met with Greenblatt in Tel Aviv, Gantz's office said in a statement without elaborating.
Greenblatt is in Israel for a series of talks ahead of the publication of the long-awaiting White House peace plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Local media reported that the U.S. envoy has arrived to assess the effect of the recent elections on the possibility of publishing the plan.
Greenblatt met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday and met with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Sunday.
"The two discussed the current situation, challenges and the opportunities it presents," the president's office said.
The Blue and White party has won 33 seats among the 120 seats during the Sept. 17 elections, becoming the largest faction in Israel's parliament.
Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party won 31 seats, casting doubts on the ruling of Israel's longest-serving prime minister.
Both parties did not win enough votes to form a majority government.
Rivlin has called for a unity government, but both leaders claim they will lead the new government.
