MIDDLE EAST:Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert said yesterday he was not sure he would be able to reach a deal with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas on statehood principles before a US-sponsored conference in November.
His comments came after some members of his centrist Kadima party called for a fuller account of his talks with Abbas.
"I have been holding meetings with Palestinian Authority chairman Abu Mazen (Abbas) and I hope that in the near future this will lead to a . . . joint declaration," Mr Olmert said. "If we can achieve a draft by November, we will achieve it, but I am not sure we will be able to do that."
Mr Olmert is seeking agreement on a broadbrush "declaration of principles" whereas Mr Abbas wants a more explicit "framework agreement" with a timeline for implementation on the core issues of borders, Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees.
Mr Olmert will meet international envoy Tony Blair in Jerusalem today. He will also meet this week with assistant US secretary of state David Welch, diplomats said.
Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Mr Olmert and Mr Abbas planned to meet "in the next few days" to try to narrow their differences.
A dearth of details about their private talks have stirred speculation in Israel that Mr Olmert plans to boost Mr Abbas through sweeping diplomatic "concessions" such as a pledge to delineate a future Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank. Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in June.
Mr Olmert said a document has yet to be agreed with Mr Abbas. If an agreement is reached, he said, "I am certain I will win support both in my party and from the people of Israel".
The US has yet to spell out what it hopes to achieve at the conference, which is expected to take place in Washington in mid-to-late November. Western diplomats said Mr Abbas and Mr Olmert are likely to attend if enough progress is made.
"We cannot allow it to fail," Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy chief, said.
Mr Abbas's Fatah faction lost control of the Gaza Strip in June to Hamas Islamists shunned by the West. Mr Olmert also has been weakened politically by his handling of last year's Lebanon war, raising doubts over the two leaders' ability to deliver on any peace promises.
After a rocket fired by Gaza militants landed by a school, Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni said her government should consider new measures to counter the rocket attacks