A Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) official denied on Sunday any kind of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority.
"There are no secret or open negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinian side," PLO executive committee member Yasser Abed Rabou told Ramallah-based al-Ayyam daily.
Rabou's clarification came as the summit meetings between Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were intensified.
The meetings "did not seriously or effectively deal with the final status issues," Abed Rabou said, adding that "Israel is the obstacle, it insists not to begin serious talks."
However, he affirmed that Israel was interested in the upcoming U.S.-sponsored international peace conference "to sit with the Arabs."
The U.S. President George Bush had earlier announced he would call for the international peace conference in the fall to revive the stalled Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Some moderate Arab countries will also join the conference.
Abed Rabou believes that the Israelis want the conference "to be limited to declaration of principles without deeply discussing the final status issues like Jerusalem, the borders, the settlements and the refugees."
Source: Xinhua
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