As he exited a meeting with President Bill Clinton late Friday Israeli envoy Gilead Sher said there was little chance of a Middle East peace accord before Clinton leaves office January 20.
"We have long odds for (an accord) but I think we can achieve something," said Sher, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's chief of staff, as he left the 30-minute meeting around 6:30 pm (2330 GMT).
"The ultimate test now is for the Palestinians to fulfill their obligations and their undertakings in the security field, in subsiding substantially the violence, the incitements, and the terrorist actions," Sher said.
Sher said the Israeli cabinet had given a go-ahead on December 28 to resume negotiations based on the parameters of the peace framework set forth by Clinton.
"The president will determine now how to proceed with the peace process," Sher said.
Sher arrived in Washington Thursday for an explanation of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's conditional acceptance of Clinton's parameters for the resumption of peace negotiations, announced the day before.
He also brought Israel's formal acceptance of US peace proposals in a six-page document delivered to the White House earlier in the day, officials said -- WASHINGTON (AFP)
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