Senior Israeli officials said Sunday that there was no breakthrough in talks between US President Bill Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the White House.
Both leaders discussed ways to put an end to six weeks of violence in the Middle East and seek ways of improving bilateral ties.
Barak said his meeting with Clinton focused "on the importance of putting an end to the violence in the Middle East, stabilizing the situation and bringing about the implementation of the Sharm el-Sheikh understandings."
Under the Sharm el-Sheikh understandings brokered by Clinton in the Egyptian Red Sea town resort on October 17, both sides were to take concrete measures to stop the Israeli-Palestinian violence and enhance security cooperation.
But the bloodshed continued and has so far claimed the lives of over 200 people, mostly Palestinian.
During the meeting, Clinton, US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Middle East envoy Dennis Ross conferred with Barak, his security adviser Danny Yatom and his chief of staff Gilad Sher.
After dinner, Clinton and Barak met one on one.
"Israel strives for peace, but a peace that will be reached at the negotiating table rather than through the imposing of the will of one or the other side through a kind of international activity," the Israeli leader stressed.
The Clinton-Barak meeting came after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat vowed in Doha, Qatar, to keep up the anti-Israeli uprising and Iran urged the world's Muslim states to take "resolute action" against the Jewish state.
"Our people are now more than ever determined to pursue their struggle," Arafat told the three-day summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Reacting to statements coming from Qatar, Barak said "a negotiated agreement is a more appropriate approach to settling international conflicts."
"Unfortunately, we do hear different signals from the Arab side," he pointed out.
While en route to the United States, Barak had turned back home overnight after a hijacked Russian plane landed in Israel, but later decided to continue to Washington, after the lone hijacker surrendered and all 58 passengers and crew were released unharmed.
Before the meeting, Barak has expressed little hope that his talks with Clinton would succeed in ending the violence that has left the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in tatters.
"I am pessimistic about the chances of re-launching the political process with the Palestinians after my meeting with Clinton," he said Friday.
But another senior Israeli official told AFP Sunday that the prime minister still hoped to conclude an agreement with the Palestinians in the two remaining months that Clinton is in office.
"The prime minister thinks it may still possible to reach an agreement during Clinton's term," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, Barak left Washington for Chicago late Sunday to address the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations, and is scheduled to hold a press conference in Chicago at 11 am (1700 GMT).
Around 5,000 Jewish leaders from member organizations, mostly from the United States and Canada, are expected to attend the convention, which began Sunday and runs through Tuesday.
The federation collected some 800 million dollars for Jewish causes in 1999 – (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
