Time for Israel, Palestinians to take decisions — Albright

At a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Albright said she and President Bill Clinton, whose is keen to clinch a deal before his term expires in seven months, remained committed to helping the Israelis and Palestinians reach an accord. "We are there ready to roll up our sleeves," she said, expressing hope that Clinton, Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat could meet together soon at a Camp David-style summit in the United States. The US presidential retreat at Camp David was the site of peace talks between Israel and Egypt in 1978 which led to the signing of a treaty the following year, the first between the Jewish state and an Arab nation. But Albright stressed that unless Barak, Arafat and their negotiating teams – who are locked in major disagreements over the "final status issues" including the future of Jerusalem, borders of a Palestinian state, Palestinian refugees and Jewish settlers – could lay an adequate groundwork for such a summit, it would not happen.

The two sides have already missed two deadlines for a framework deal and are now blaming each other for the current poor state of the negotiations. Clinton "is prepared to have such a summit but we have to make sure that the conditions are right", said Albright.

Barak, who a senior US official said had confirmed his commitment to the peace process in more than two hours of talks and is eager to hear the results of the Arafat meeting, agreed with Albright’s assessment. "I believe that such a summit should take place only when there is a chance to bridge the gaps between the two parties, this is not an event without risks, (but) if the conditions are right for a summit it should happen," Barak said.

"Within the coming few weeks we will know if there is the will and determination on both sides to try to resolve the problems and to put an end to the conflict," he added.

Barak, facing a virulent campaign by Jewish extremists over the transfer to the Palestinians of land they consider part of Biblical Israel, is also grappling with a potential new crisis in his fragile coalition government because of an on-going feud with the powerful ultra-Orthodox Jewish party Shas. As the Albright-Barak meeting took place at the Prime minister’s office, a group of Right-wing demonstrators chanted "Albright go home".

Public radio reported that Israel is prepared to cede up to 75 percent of the West Bank, land it captured in the June 1967 Six Day War, while Right-wingers claim it is prepared to hand over areas in the Jordan Valley, regarded as key for Israel’s security because it borders Jordan.

"We need security and a permanent presence along the Jordan Valley but the details would be decided only through negotiations," Barak sid. Albright travels to Cairo on Wednesday to meet Syrian Foreign Minister Faruq al-Shara, as well as Egyptian leaders. She said they would discuss the possibilities of a revival of Israeli-Syrian peace talks which broke off in January over the fate of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights only weeks after their resumption.