Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that he and
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas did not come to any conclusion
during their meeting last week, the daily Ha'aretz reported
on its website.
Olmert was quoted as saying at the weekly cabinet meeting that
there were no agreements or understandings reached between him and
Abbas.
The two leaders during the meeting "surveyed the problems and
the central issues that are the basis for negotiations that will
lead to two states for two peoples," said the report.
Olmert and Abbas have been meeting frequently in the recent
months, aiming at preparing a document that could be presented at a
US-sponsored Middle East peace conference slated for November.
In addition, Olmert said while the peace conference is designed
to promote the Middle East peace process, it is by no means a
substitute for direct negotiations between Israel and the
Palestinians.
Following their meeting last week, the Israeli and Palestinian
negotiating teams will begin this week to draft the joint statement
which they will present at the upcoming peace conference.
So far, the two sides are still at odds on the nature of the
document, as the Palestinians seek a detailed document that
addresses final-status issues -- status of Jerusalem, borders and
Palestinian refugees -- while Israel would like a more ambiguous
document with no more than a mention of those issues.
On July 16, US President George W. Bush proposed to hold an
international peace conference this fall, which would include
Israel, the Palestinians, and some neighboring Arab states, to help
resume the stalled Middle East peace talks.
(Xinhua News Agency October 8, 2007)
