Rice urges Israel to do more for Palestinians

Despite the ongoing negotiations, there has been little tangible progress leading many to believe that the Annapolis goal is no longer realistic, particularly with Livni and other Israeli officials distracted by trying to form a new governing coalition.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack allowed that there had been an impact on the negotiations, but stressed it had not affected U.S. resolve.

"Once you do get an Israeli government that is fully up and running and ready to actively push forward on that front, we'll see where those discussions lead," he told reporters.

In her speech, Rice vowed that she would continue to work hard to meet the year-end deadline, although she acknowledged that "there are many challenges" still to overcome.

"We must do everything that we can with the negotiating partners to get to the Annapolis solution and that would be to find an agreement between these parties by the end of the year," she said. "It is very difficult, there's a hard road ahead, but if we do not try, we almost certainly will not succeed."

"Until that moment when I leave office, I will leave no stone unturned to see if we can finally resolve this conflict," Rice said.