Abbas, Sharon prepare for Summit amidst doubts
Middle East Desk Report

JERUSALEM—Aides to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met on Sunday to prepare for this week’s planned summit after both leaders suggested it could be postponed. No breakthroughs are expected at the meeting, tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, but it could help maintain momentum for peacemaking after Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip last month to end 38 years of military rule. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said after meeting senior Sharon aide Dov Weisglass in Jerusalem that they would hold talks again on Monday. He told Reuters that Sunday’s discussion was “positive and in-depth.” A plan to hold a summit earlier this month was postponed amid a surge in violence and because of a lack of preparations. Abbas and Sharon both said there would be no point holding a meeting on Tuesday if it was not going to deliver concrete results. The plan to meet on Tuesday was first announced after Jordan’s King Abdullah spoke to the leaders. “Holding the contacts is important, but one does not go in without proper preparation,” Sharon was quoted as telling Sunday’s cabinet meeting. In Gaza on Saturday, Abbas said: “We don’t want a failed summit or a summit for public relations. Both sides want to improve their standing in Washington’s eyes ahead of Abbas’s White House talks with US President George W. Bush scheduled for October 20.