Monday June 9, 2008
Rice to hold talks with Israeli, Palestinian teams
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to hold a three-way meeting next week with the chief Israeli and Palestinian negotiators, a senior Palestinian official said on Monday.
Marred by disputes over Jewish settlement expansion and violence in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, U.S.-backed peace talks have shown little sign of progress since they were launched at a conference in Annapolis, Maryland in November.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivers remarks at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference in Washington in this June 3, 2008 file photo. (REUTERS/Yuri Gripas)
A corruption investigation of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert could trigger new elections, dimming the chances of a deal this year, Israeli, Palestinian and Western officials say.
Palestinian officials said the three-way meeting between Rice and the chief negotiators -- Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and former Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie -- would take place on June 15 in Jerusalem, and not June 16 as previously stated.
"It is to review the negotiations in all its aspects," said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
Rice, who will visit Israel and the occupied West Bank, convened a similar three-way meeting earlier this year.
Qurie said on Saturday that the Palestinians were still conducting talks with their Israeli counterparts despite "wide gaps" in positions. The two sides agreed in their last meeting to begin drafting a position paper in an attempt to narrow those gaps, he said.
Copyright © 2008 Reuters
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment