Ariel Sharon and Shimon Peres before Sharon's departure to Washington. (Reuters)

	Will the Pollard issue be discussed?
	The Americans and Sharon
	Sharon's American agenda Gerald M. Steinberg, Jerusalem Post
	Shaping the future David Kimche, Jerusalem Post
	Will the Arabs give Sharon a chance?
	Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs
	Prime Minister's Office

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon arrived in Washington late last night to begin a round of meetings with members of the new American administration. Sharon will tell President Bush, in the first meeting between the two since they each took office, that Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat is directly responsible for directing and encouraging terror.

Sharon will make a clear distinction between the Palestinian Authority and the civilian population. Sharon's team will present evidence to the Americans that Palestinian security forces, including the Force 17 presidential guard and Fatah members, have been among those launching attacks. Sharon will be asked by the Americans to clarify the reasons that Israel refuses to transfer tax levies owed to the Palestinian Authority.

Sharon aide, Ra'anan Gissin, said, "The most pressing issue

	"We have to deal with the Palestinian issue first." - Prime Minister Sharon

on the agenda would be, probably, the uprising, the surge in terrorist activity, particularly that it is instigated by the Palestinian Authority and by Yasser Arafat."

In parallel, Sharon will state his desire to ease conditions for the Palestinian civilian population. The Americans are expected to question the recent blockades of West Bank cities and the use of collective punishment against the Palestinians.

Prime Minister Sharon will present the Americans with his diplomatic plan. Sharon will detail certain concessions he would be willing to offer the Palestinians, if and when the Palestinian leaders publicly renounce violence and quiet is restored in the territories.

"All recent Israeli governments have invested a great deal of effort with the Palestinians, and we have to deal with this issue first," Sharon told reporters on his way to Washington.

Another issue on the agenda is American attempts to resurrect a regional coalition against Saddam Hussein. Gissin admitted that the issue of keeping Hussein from obtaining non-conventional weapons would be discussed at the talks. Israel will ask to sever the link between violence in the territories and the Iraqi front. In addition, Israel will ask to receive advance notice of American military actions against Iraq in the future.

The Israeli team is expected to ask the Americans to increase pressure on Syria, due to Syria's continued support for the Hizbullah. Prime Minister Sharon will probably not press to upgrade the security relations between Israel and the United States, nor will he ask for additional advanced weaponry. Special financial aid packages promised by the Clinton administration will probably be shelved.

American officials are expected to raise the issue of Israel's extra-judicial killings of terrorists. The American administration is reportedly reviewing the issue to see how it would affect the transfer of American military aid to Israel.

Sharon may be willing to evacuate settlements
Ha'aretz reported this morning that Prime Minister Sharon was willing to offer the evacuation of isolated settlements in the Gaza Strip if Yasser Arafat agreed to a series of interim agreements. According to the Ha'aretz report, which was reportedly denied by members of Sharon's delegation in Washington, the Sharon plan would give the Palestinian Authority more territorial contiguity. Sharon planned to detail this approach in talks with President Bush.

Infrastructure Minister Rechavam Ze'evi also dismissed the Ha'aretz report. Ze'evi told Army Radio this morning that the Prime Minister would stick to a pledge to keep all settlements in place.

Palestinian minister Ziyad Abu Zayyad said Ariel Sharon's talks in Washington would fail if they focused only on reducing the level of violence.

"If he goes there with old talk about terrorism and the war on terrorism...this is nonsense," Zayyad told Israel Radio. "He needs to talk about the real issue. There is a political conflict here between two nations.''

Palestinian sources quoted in The Jerusalem Post today accused Prime Minister Sharon of blaming Yasser Arafat directly for the ongoing violence in order to justify the blockades of West Bank cities. Palestinian sources reportedly fear that Sharon would pressure the United States to prevent the UN Security Council from passing a resolution to send international observers to Palestinian areas.

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