White House Cites Progress at Israel-Syria Talks

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk Shareh met face to face Tuesday in peace talks that were short on specifics but buoyed the spirits of U.S. mediators who were clearly embarrassed by a procedural squabble that had left the session in limbo.

President Clinton, who left Shepherdstown in frustration Monday night after the two sides deadlocked over which of their bitter disputes they should tackle first, returned to this West Virginia college town Tuesday to preside over an hourlong meeting attended by Barak and Shareh as well as Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

Although Barak and Shareh did not shake hands, State Department spokesman James P. Rubin described a freewheeling conversation in which the two men talked directly to each other and to Clinton and Albright. He said the four were the only people in the room and that Barak and Shareh avoided the need for time-consuming interpreters by using only English.

“It was a constructive and productive session that put the process clearly on track,” Rubin said. At the same time, he said, Barak and Shareh talked mostly in generalities, avoiding details of the antagonisms that have kept their two countries in a formal state of war for more than 50 years.

White House Press Secretary Joe Lockhart said Barak and Shareh “reaffirmed their commitment to the process--a process which we expect to be comprehensive and rigorous.”

U.S. officials said the delegations formed committees of experts to take on the specific issues--namely, security for the Israelis and land for the Syrians. An American mediator was assigned to each committee.

As of late Tuesday, none of the panels had met, although all are expected to start their sessions in the next day or two.

“This was a very productive meeting,” Lockhart said. “Both sides have gotten together and are getting down to business.”

Officials said Monday’s planned Barak-Shareh meeting didn’t take place because Israel and Syria couldn’t agree on an agenda for the rest of the conference. Each side wanted to resolve the issues it considers most important before moving on to the ones favored by the other.

Syria wanted to first take up its demand for the return of the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau that Israel seized during the 1967 Six-Day War. Israel wanted to begin with issues of security guarantees and diplomatic normalization.

After hours of U.S.-motivated diplomacy, the Israelis and the Syrians apparently finessed the dispute, setting up a work plan without getting too specific on the order in which the committees would meet.

“A discussion of all of the issues will be held in one forum or another in the next several days,” Rubin said. He refused to go into greater detail.

“The procedural hurdle that emerged [Monday] has been overcome,” he said, “and we are proceeding apace.”

Most experts believe that each side eventually will get what it wants most, but the bargaining will be tough and nothing is certain. Rubin said no one expects a major breakthrough this week. He said the three delegations--including the U.S. mediators--will assess their progress at the end of the week and decide if it would be useful to continue into next week.

Israel and Syria had never met at such a high political level before a two-day preliminary conference last month.

In an effort to put a human face on the dispute, the U.S. hosts staged a reception Tuesday night, giving the Israelis, Syrians and Americans a chance to mingle informally. But no one showed much confidence that one party would overcome generations of hatred, and the gathering lasted only half an hour.

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Israel-Syria Talks: Round 2

ISSUES TO RESOLVE

Land

Syria’s principal demand is the full return of the strategic Golan Heights, a plateau that Israel captured in the Six-Day War of June 1967. Israel has indicated it is prepared to give up most of this land but wants to adhere to the international border established in 1923, which placed the Sea of Galilee entirely within territory that is now Israel.

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Water

A key concern of Israel--which, like many countries of the region, suffers from a chronic water shortage--is winning guarantees from Syria that a withdrawal from the Golan would not affect Israel’s water supplies, either from the Sea of Galilee or tributaries of the Jordan River.

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Security

The Israelis want an international force to monitor activity on Mt. Hermon, which overlooks the Golan. Israelis originally wanted an Israeli force at that station, but the Syrians objected. According to recent reports in the Israeli press, Syria could agree to the warning stations being manned by U.S. civilians.

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Normalization of Relations

Israel wants proper diplomatic and other relations between the two countries, not a “cold peace.” Syria is unsure about trade relations, and is unlikely to consider the opening of an Israeli embassy in Damascus until a Golan withdrawal is carried out.

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Sources: Los Angeles Times research, wire reports