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September 24, 2007

Bush to Discuss Mideast Conference Plan With Abbas
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=199CC7C:A6F02AD83191E160EF29A488A83224619574F7DCC14957C0 US president to
meet with Palestinian counterpart in New York City, Monday





President George W. BushU.S. President George Bush meets Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas in New York Monday, to discuss plans for a
U.S.-sponsored Mideast peace conference.

Mr. Abbas is expected to ask Mr. Bush to ensure the conference
produces a timetable for achieving Palestinian statehood. The two
leaders will meet on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly
meeting.

Israel has said it is seeking a less-detailed declaration of
principles from the Mideast conference, expected to be held in
November.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday the Bush
administration plans to invite Syria and other members of the Arab
League to the conference.

She also said participants at the conference should be committed to a
peaceful solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and renouncing
violence.

A senior U.S. official said other invitees are likely to include
Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, in addition to Israel
and the Palestinian Authority.

Rice discussed preparations for the conference in New York Sunday with
other members of the Mideast Quartet -- Russia, the European Union and
the United Nations.

President Bush also meets Monday, in New York with the Quartet's
Mideast envoy, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Mr. Bush will
address the U.N. General Assembly Tuesday.

Mr. Blair said Sunday one goal of the proposed Mideast conference is
to provide "a sense of what a Palestinian state will look like", in
terms of its capabilities and governance.


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