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Abbas and Olmert set for meeting Abbas and Olmert start key talks
(about 7 hours later)
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are due to meet in Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas have begun what is being seen as a key meeting in Jerusalem.
The two are trying to prepare a programme for next month's US-sponsored Middle East conference.The two are trying to prepare a programme for next month's US-sponsored Middle East conference.
But the two sides have rather different views on what should be on the table - the Palestinians want a detailed plan, the Israelis something vaguer.
The meeting is being seen as crucial to the success of November's conference.
The two leaders are meeting one-on-one at Mr Olmert's residence in Jerusalem before bringing in negotiating teams "charged with drafting the joint statement to be given at the international meeting," said Israeli government spokesman David Baker.
It is the first formal meeting of the negotiating teams ahead of the conference, expected to be held in late November in the US.
Divergent aims
But correspondents say there are significant gaps between the two sides' starting positions.
The Palestinians want a detailed framework on settling outstanding issues such as borders, the status of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.The Palestinians want a detailed framework on settling outstanding issues such as borders, the status of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.
The Israelis prefer a broad statement on principles without committing to a timetable for final-status talks.The Israelis prefer a broad statement on principles without committing to a timetable for final-status talks.
The meeting is being seen as crucial to the success of the conference, says the BBC's Tim Franks in Jerusalem. And neither leader is helped by a weak domestic position, although Mr Olmert's ratings have been boosted recently following Israel's mysterious air raid into Syria, says the BBC's Nick Childs.
Two-state solution For Mr Abbas and his chosen government there is still the spectre of their rivals in the Hamas movement, our correspondent says.
The two leaders are to meet one-on-one at Mr Olmert's residence in Jerusalem before bringing in negotiating teams "charged with drafting the joint statement to be given at the international meeting," said Israeli government spokesman David Baker. Indeed, for all the parties involved in these negotiations, there is the question of how Hamas and its supporters would respond to either progress or failure.
It is the first formal meeting of the negotiating teams ahead of the conference, expected to be held in late November in the US. Date in question
But Wednesday's encounter should at least provide a clearer picture of the chances of putting together a viable conference next month, our correspondent adds.
There has already been at least one suggestion that the planned conference may have to be postponed.
The Americans are hoping to bring together the region's key players to work towards an Israeli-Palestinian peace settlement.The Americans are hoping to bring together the region's key players to work towards an Israeli-Palestinian peace settlement.
The US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, has said the conference must address substantive issues and advance the cause of a Palestinian state.The US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, has said the conference must address substantive issues and advance the cause of a Palestinian state.
The US has promoted a two-state solution, but the Israeli-Palestinian peace process has been stalled for most of the Bush administration.The US has promoted a two-state solution, but the Israeli-Palestinian peace process has been stalled for most of the Bush administration.