Albright Adds 2nd Meeting With Barak

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, trying to prepare for a risky Middle East peace summit, has added a second meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to her two-day trip to the region.

Saying the moment of truth was fast approaching for Israelis and Palestinians, Albright spent about three hours with Barak in Jerusalem on Monday evening, and a senior U.S. official said they will meet again today after she sees Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.

In a news conference with Barak, Albright said there was a historic opportunity to clinch a deal this year to set the seal on some of the toughest disputes in the Arab-Israeli conflict.

“We all have to work very hard to pursue this opportunity at full speed, but we have to make sure that there is a basis laid for what we are doing,” she said.

President Clinton, to crown years of mediation, wants to arrange a three-way meeting with Barak and Arafat within months, but U.S. officials have said the gap is still too big for Albright to fix the date for the summit during this trip.

The Israelis and Palestinians have set Sept. 13 as the target date for agreement on what they call “permanent status” issues such as the borders of the Palestinian territories, Jerusalem, Jewish settlements and Palestinian refugees.

Barak agreed Monday that a summit must be properly prepared.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, speaking after Albright and Barak had dinner together, said, “We heard quite clearly Mr. Barak’s commitment to reach an agreement and discussions focused on how to get there.”