JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met Monday for the first time in six weeks, as the two leaders sought to make inroads on U.S.-sponsored peace talks in advance of President Bush’s visit to Israel in May.
Bush will help commemorate Israel’s 60th anniversary. His administration is making a strong push for Israelis and Palestinians to achieve a lasting peace settlement before he leaves office in early 2009.
Abbas and Olmert met for two hours along with senior negotiating teams, then conferred one-on-one for another hour.
Senior Palestinian official Saeb Eerekat, who attended the negotiating sessions, characterized the discussions as “in-depth and serious,” and said the two leaders hoped to meet again in about two weeks.
Neither side would provide details of Monday’s discussions, which were expected to address the core issues that have derailed previous attempts at a lasting peace. These include the potential division of Jerusalem, the fate of Palestinian refugees and the final borders of an independent Palestinian state.
“If our talks with the Palestinians are going to succeed, there has to be a high level of discretion,” said Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev.
Since the U.S.-sponsored peace conference in Annapolis, Md., in November kicked off the current negotiating push, talks have been frequently challenged by events on the ground.
Each side has regularly accused the other of violating terms of the “road map,” peace plan, which requires Israel to halt settlement construction in the occupied West Bank and charges Palestinians with reining in militant groups.
Both Abbas and Olmert say they are committed to the peace process, but both also face significant domestic challenges. Right-wing parties in Olmert’s fragile coalition regularly threaten to bring down the government if the prime minister gives away too much.
Abbas faces serious questions about his own government’s legitimacy after his Fatah party lost parliamentary elections in 2006 to Hamas and later lost control of the Gaza Strip to Hamas forces.
