Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said on Thursday that he hopes for Israel to agree to a settlement freeze on occupied Palestinian land by the end of September.

"Concerning the peace process, we reaffirmed that we were entirely disposed to go forward with negotiations for the (Palestinian territories') final status if Israel stops settlement building," Abbas said.

"This is the main concern of the American administration and of all of our European friends with France leading," he told a press conference alongside French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner as he began a visit to France.

"I think that we can get a result this month," Abbas said. "Between now and the UN General Assembly, we to have found a solution to this problem. Then we will be able to resume peace negotiations," frozen since September 2008.

World leaders will attend the UN General Assembly in New York from September 23.

The thorny issue of settlements on occupied Palestinian land -- which house some half a million Israelis and are considered illegal by the international community -- are among the main obstacles in the peace process.

Israel has so far refused to agree to a demand from the United States to freeze all new settlement activity.

The Palestinians have refused to resume peace talks until Israel freezes all construction in the occupied West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem, which they want to make the capital of their promised state.

Abbas is to meet French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday.