PRESIDENT Clinton held "frank, candid" talks with the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, yesterday, rebuffing his call for a US led Mideast summit while trying to revive stalled peace efforts.
Using diplomatic language that usually suggests a strong clash of views and little progress, Mr Clinton said after his two hours with Mr Netanyahu, "We had a very specific, frank, candid and long talk." Mr Clinton added, "Now we re going to talk to the Palestinians and see whether there's something we can do to get this thing going again."
Mr Netanyahu said "nothing definitive" had come from his talks with Mr Clinton and insisted it was the Palestinians, not the Israelis, who were breaking Middle East peace accords.
In reference to negotiations with the Palestinians, Mr Netanyahu said, "There is a government - the government of Great Britain - that is refusing to negotiate with Sinn Fein so long as there is violence." Israel is not demanding that in the case of the Palestinians, he added.
Earlier, Mr Clinton said he had been heavily involved in peace since taking office and he would not rule out any possibility for achieving it "to get the process going again and to reinstate the confidence necessary for the parties to go forward." But he suggested it would be "premature" to talk about initiating Camp David style negotiations.
Mr Netanyahu came here with a Camp David style negotiation in mind. An article in Saturday's New York Times which reflected his thinking stressed the need to stop terrorism on the West Bank, for which he blames Mr Yasser Arafat. Otherwise there can be no peace process, he indicated.
His proposal calls for "a quick final settlement", like Camp David, which was not a final settlement, of course.
Mr Netanyahu's plan to get the peace process back on track" is based on the partly successful "Camp David" accords which followed negotiations in 1977 between the Prime Minister, Mr Menachem Begin, and President Anwar Sadat of Egypt at the US presidential retreat in the Maryland foothills. The accords hammered out there ended hostilities between Egypt and Israel following four wars 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1972.
These accords, which also resulted in Egyptian recognition of Israel, made President Sadat a pariah in the Arab world and led to his assassination.
Mr Netanyahu made the issue between him and Mr Arafat one of "terrorism". The Palestinian leader has dismissed Mr Netanyahu's Camp David view as a "gimmick".
The Israeli Prime Minister appeared to twin indirect support for his proposal, with emphasis on the "terrorism" aspect, from the US Vice President, Mr Al Gore, who told a pro Israel lobbying group, "Let no one mistake that we will permit terrorism to be a card for peace. All parties must have zero tolerance for terrorism. But the effort to get the peace process back on track will continue," he said.
Before meeting Mr Clinton, Mr Netanyahu flew to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where King Hussein of Jordan is undergoing medical treatment. The Israeli Prime Minister sought his support for the Camp David idea. The ailing king, seems to think it has a "chance of success.
Mr Netanyahu is stressing the need to stop terrorism in the Middle East. He said here: "Terrorism is a war crime. . we will never justify terrorism, regardless of the "motivation" the terrorists give for their actions.
The United States is seeking assurances that further involvement in the Israeli Palestinian issue will lead to success before adopting new schemes to bring it about. Mr Clinton would like Mr Netanyahu to do something to improve the lot of the Palestinians first.
Among the ideas Mr Clinton apparently is examining is to send a high level US delegation led by the Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, to the region - but only if she can achieve "concrete" results. This, rather than Camp David negotiations, would be good for her image as a "trouble shooter", in contrast with her predecessor, Mr Warren Christopher, who made several trips to the Middle East in his search for a peace agreement between the Arab states and Israel. He achieved nothing other than record air mileage. (Additional reporting by Reuter)
AFP adds from New Delhi: Mr Arafat stole the limelight on the opening day of a Non Aligned Movement conference here yesterday, accusing Israel of declaring war on the Palestinian people.
Mr Arafat's powerful speech won loud applause from delegates at the ministerial conference.
The address included in the day's agenda at the last moment after Mr Arafat's late arrival as a special guest, overshadowed a speech by the United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan backing calls for UN reform.