Arafat suggested Berlin as a venue for the talks in a joint press conference held yesterday with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer. Fischer, who seemed a bit taken by surprise, said, "If this should happen in Berlin ... the door will be always open, but I think there are some other places not so far away in regional distances."

Fischer met with Peres on Monday, and reportedly relayed

"There are other beautiful places in the world for this type of meeting, including in the Middle East, and even at home." - FM Shimon Peres

a message to Arafat calling for talks and suggesting the idea of a gradual truce. After his meeting with Arafat in Ramallah, Fischer met with Sharon, who told him that he approves having Peres meet with Arafat as long as the two limit their talks to discussing a cease-fire. Fischer then returned to Ramallah for a second, unscheduled meeting with Arafat.

Fischer has assumed the role of a mediator before. He was in Israel at the beginning of June and heard the blast of the suicide bombing at the Dolphinarium disco from his hotel window. Fischer's efforts to persuade Arafat to declare a cease-fire reportedly prevented a strong Israeli retaliation for the bombing.

Ha'aretz reported that Fischer's involvement in next week's proposed meeting gives the Palestinians "an international umbrella for a meeting with Peres and an opportunity to back down from their demand that Israel re-open the Palestinian Liberation Organization's headquarters in East Jerusalem, the Orient House, as a pre-condition for renewed talks."

Peres said that he intends to meet with Arafat in the near future, and that a date would be established following his return from an official visit to Hungary and Poland and after Arafat returned from a trip to China. Regarding the suggestion that the talks take place in Berlin, Peres said in a statement "there are other beautiful places in the world for this type of meeting, including in the Middle East, and even at home."

Proposed meeting draws criticism, doubts
Minister without portfolio Danny Naveh (Likud) said the meeting would weaken Israel in its battle against terror. "Instead of running to Germany for a meeting with Arafat, it's necessary to carry out a political and informational campaign against Arafat throughout the world," he said in a statement.

National Infrastructure Minister Avigdor Lieberman (National Union) condemned the meeting saying that it would not accomplish anything. "[The meeting] is intended to save the reputations of the architects of Oslo. Without decisive military action against the PA no diplomatic solution will be successful," he said.

Knesset Member Shlomo Ben-Ami (Labor), Foreign Minister in the Barak government, said the proposed meeting would only result in another, unimplemented cease-fire declaration. "There is no alternative, other than a return, even in stages, to the Clinton proposals for a permanent agreement, internationally sponsored, that would force Arafat to finally end his strategy of conflict with Israel," Ben-Ami wrote today in Yediot Aharonot.

A senior Palestinian official told the Jerusalem Post that the Palestinians are pessimistic about the outcome of the meeting. He doubted that Peres would have a mandate to make decisions regarding the implementation of the Mitchell Report.

Palestinian U.N. observer, Nasser Al-Kidwa, who has been urging the UN Security Council to send an international observer force to the territories, doubted that the Peres-Arafat talks would change anything. Al-Kidwa said that Sharon had "dictated'' conditions, including a ban on serious discussion of political questions, and that the talks would be limited to the security situation and conditions on the ground.

Israel's Channel 1 Television reported last night that an official in the Prime Minister's Office told Peres he must prepare well for his meeting with Arafat "to ensure that there will be more results than a handshake and smiles for the cameras." Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's spokesman Ra'anan Gissin responded to the report by saying that "the foreign minister knows how to conduct this business, and he doesn't need any advice."

Opposition leader Yossi Sarid (Meretz) did offer two pieces of advice to Peres. "The meeting must be prepared carefully with acceptable results known to participants in advance," Sarid wrote today in Yediot Aharonot, noting that former Prime Minister Ehud Barak's unprepared discussions at Camp David "had ruined our lives." Sarid also advised Peres to know beforehand what mandate he had from the government and Sharon. "The Palestinians have complained that Peres does not fulfill his promises. I would like to hope that these complaints have no basis," Sarid wrote.

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