Chief Mideast Negotiators Meet with Albright

Published July 10th, 2000 - 03:00 GMT

The chief Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in Washington Sunday, ahead of the Mideast summit, a Palestinian official told AFP.

At their meeting late Sunday, Albright, Palestinian parliamentary speaker Ahmed Qorei and Israel's public security minister Shlomo Ben Ami discussed general guidelines for the summit, the Palestinian official said.

He said the talks would focus on Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees and land. The historic summit between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and US President Bill Clinton will take place Tuesday at the Camp David presidential retreat north of the capital.

The two chief negotiators met earlier Sunday to set the agenda for talks, according to Ben Ami.

The summit will tackle the key issues that divide Palestinian and Israelis, including final borders, Jerusalem, the right of return of Palestinian refugees and the future of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The historic meeting comes as Barak faces a deepening political crisis at home, having lost his majority in parliament, and ahead of a September 13 deadline the two sides have set for themselves to settle all outstanding issues between them.

Arafat has stated his intention to proclaim an independent Palestinian state on that day with or without Israeli agreement -- WASHINGTON (AFP)