ARAB ISRAELI RELATIONS - Aug 6 - Abbas, Olmert Pave Way For Talks On State.

Israeli PM Ehud Olmert, and the PA president Mahmoud Abbas, meet in Jericho to discuss resuming negotiations on Palestinian statehood. The Israeli leader made clear at the outset of the three-hour summit, their first in the West Bank, that it was not the opening of bargaining about core issues but rather talks about talks. "I came here in order to discuss with you the fundamental issues outstanding between Israel and the PA, hoping that this will lead us soon into negotiations about the creation of a Palestinian state", Olmert said. The concept of Palestinian statehood has been on the table since Israel accepted, with 14 written reservations, the 2002 "road map" presented by the international Quartet - the US, EU, UN and Russia. The Quartet document proposed a timetable for agreement on Palestinian statehood by 2005, but the process was undermined by continued conflict, the rise of Hamas, and Israel's determination not to fulfill its obligations under the plan, such as a halt to settlement expansion, until the Palestinians stopped the use of violence. Aug 6 meeting came after a flurry of diplomatic activity that is focused on US President George W. Bush's call for a Middle East meeting this autumn to be attended by Israeli and Palestinian representatives and some Arab states. Abbas's dismissal of a Hamas-led government after the Islamists ousted forces loyal to his rival Fatah movement from the Gaza Strip removed a barrier to progress with Israel. Some members of both parties, however, have expressed concern that he risks being drawn into a possible imposed settlement because of his current political weakness. Expectations for the private talks were low after Israeli officials said they would not touch on core issues such as final borders, the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees. Both leaders have pointed out the need for broad agreement on principles before detailed negotiations could begin. For the Palestinians that means establishing the outlines of a final peace settlement that would include the most contentious issues. Since the dismissal of the Hamas-led government, Israel has taken some steps to bolster Abbas, such as releasing 250 Palestinian prisoners last month. The decision to meet in the West Bank, after Israeli security chiefs vetoed Jericho as the venue for an earlier meeting, was seen as a further such gesture. The isolated oasis town was relatively untouched by the Palestinian uprising. It is part of so-called Area-A - territory handed over to the PA as part of the Oslo peace process but subsequently subjected to renewed Israeli military control in 2002. Jericho was once more handed over to Palestinian security control in 2005, although some military checkpoints remained in place, including the one a few hundred yards from Aug 6 summit venue on the outskirts of town. Since the outbreak of the Palestinian uprising, Israeli civilians are prevented by Israeli law from entering Area