Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter paid a significant visit to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Tuesday.

He held talks with Hamas leaders to persuade them to renounce violence and accept the existing peace agreements as well as the right of the Jewish state to exist.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, left, sits with Ismail Haniyeh, head of Gaza's Hamas government, during their meeting in Haniyeh's office in Gaza City,Tuesday, June 16, 2009. [Ashraf Amra/CCTV/AP Photo]

During his meeting with Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haneya, Carter stressed the importance of the proposals laid out by U.S. President Barack Obama in his recent speech in Cairo which said there should be two "sovereign nations" living side by side, with the "right to exist and to live in peace."

Haneya said he wants to move forward to establish a Palestinian state.

Ismail Haneya, Hamas Prime Minister in Gaza, said, "If there is a real project aiming to solve the Palestinian issue on the principle of establishing a Palestinian state according to the borders of 4 June 1967, with a complete sovereignty and rights, then we welcome this."

Carter said he was trying to persuade Hamas leaders to accept the international community's conditions for ending its boycott of the Islamic militant group.

The international community has asked Hamas to recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept previous peace deals.

Carter also delivered a note to Haneya from the parents of Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, who was captured by Hamas militants in 2006 and remains in captivity in the Gaza Strip.

(CCTV June 17, 2009)