U.S. PRESSES ISRAEL ON WEST BANK PLAN.

Byline: Steven Erlanger The New York Times

In an effort to keep the search for an Israeli-Palestinian peace from collapsing after two days of difficult talks here, the United States on Tuesday set a deadline of early next week for Israel to agree to American proposals for a withdrawal from 13 percent of the West Bank.

Otherwise, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said, the United States ``will have to re-examine our approach to the peace process.''

To make agreement more attractive to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Cabinet, President Clinton offered to begin accelerated talks on a final settlement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on Monday in Washington - but only if Israel first agrees to the withdrawal.

The Israelis not need carry out the withdrawal first, as the Americans previously proposed. Instead, the withdrawals would take place during 12 weeks in parallel with Palestinian steps to counter terrorism.

Netanyahu left London for Israel, making no apologies for leaving without a final agreement. Working-level talks will continue in London, but the next important decisions will be made during the next few days in Israel, where Netanyahu said he would consult his Cabinet.

The Israeli government would need to agree to the refined American proposals by Sunday evening to make the Monday meeting, American officials said.

It was Netanyahu who first proposed a rapid start to negotiations on a permanent settlement with the Palestinians, including a resolution of final borders and the status of Jerusalem.

He has argued that the interim withdrawals from the West Bank agreed to by a prior Labor government in the 1993 and 1995 Oslo Accords are harder for him in political and security terms than a final package would be.

The Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, already has agreed in principle to the American proposals, including the carrot to Netanyahu of final status talks beginning before the withdrawals.

``We've wanted to get into final status talks for a long time now,'' Dore Gold, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations and part of the Netanyahu delegation here, said in an interview. ``We are seeking ways to creatively move this forward, and deadlines help.''

Arafat, who said little in public, seemed pleased to have Albright as his advocate. He is clearly happy to wait for the outcome of the dispute between Israel and the United States.

American officials refused to say they were optimistic that the Israelis would agree, but said they had some hope. ``There are serious differences still, and we just don't know if we can bridge the gaps,'' said Albright's spokesman, James Rubin.

After short meetings with Netanyahu and with Arafat on Tuesday morning, and a long day of meetings Monday, Albright said working-level talks with Israeli officials would continue in London and that some minor refinement of the American proposals was possible.

But, she said, ``the invitation to the Washington meeting is on the basis of those ideas, and watering them down is not in the works.''

The American proposal for a 13 percent withdrawal is understood to be a firm number, but the Israelis have said publicly it is impossible for security reasons. Nevertheless, American and Israeli officials continue to discuss what Albright called ``helpful and constructive ideas'' from Netanyahu on how to structure that withdrawal.

Although Netanyahu's spokesman, David Bar-Illan, has said Israel could not agree to a 13 percent withdrawal, the prime minister is understood to have moved close to that figure. But given his public position, it would be hard for him to sell 13 percent to his Cabinet, just as it is hard for the Americans - or Arafat - to back down.

The Palestinians now control 27 percent of the West Bank, and would control 40 percent should the American proposal prevail.

``There are still some critical aspects that need to be discussed,'' said Albright.``We didn't resolve everything here, obviously,'' she said.

Albright warned that the American effort to mediate, without taking public positions about what should be done or which side to blame, could not continue if no agreement was reached by Monday.

``We have been engaged in what I consider a vigorous effort to achieve an agreement, and we will continue to do so in the coming days,'' she said. ``But if agreement is not achieved, we will have to re-examine our approach to the peace process.''

Netanyahu has urged that Clinton not make public an American proposal that he says that he, as an elected prime minister, is bound to reject. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israeli lobbying group, strongly encouraged 81 senators to sign a letter to Clinton urging the same.

But after what the Americans consider to have been extraordinary efforts on their part to meet Israel's concerns - including the proposal of starting the final status talks before, not after, a further withdrawal - Albright and her aides clearly wanted Netanyahu to think hard about the consequences of a more forceful and public American role.