RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Wednesday he would not attend a forthcoming US-sponsored Middle East meeting at any cost, calling for a timetable on reaching a deal with Israel.
Time must not be lost because that s not in anyone s interest. We cannot go to the meeting at any cost. It is unacceptable to go there at any cost, Abbas told reporters following talks with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
He said Israel and the Palestinians should reach agreement on a clear document that would provide the basis of a future peace treaty to end their decades-old conflict.
We want to reach a clear document that will help us to start negotiations under a definite timetable. We need a clear document and a deadline to reach a definitive result, Abbas added.
Rice is on a five-day visit to the Middle East to broker agreement between Israel and the Palestinians on the outlines of a peace deal that the two sides will negotiate after a summit in Annapolis, Maryland, later this autumn.
