Mideast Talks End Without Peace Agreement

July 19 -- Middle East peace talks at Camp David have ended with no apparent agreement between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders, sources told ABCNEWS.

President Clinton is enroute to the White House and is expected to make a statement soon.

Earlier tonight, Israeli radio reported that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak was preparing to leave the Middle East summit at Camp David, accusing Palestinians of not being a real partner for peace.

The radio report quoted sources as saying Barak planned to leave the Camp David Summit talks imminently.

“Prime Minister Ehud Barak is preparing to return to Israel soon from the Camp David talks. Senior sources tell us that he apparently will not wait the full 24 hours which PresidentClinton had decided to extend the talks,” the radio said.

“Barak decided to return to Israel because it became clear to him the Palestinians are not a real partner to peace,” it said, quoting the sources.

However, Israeli embassy officials told ABCNEWS that Barak will stay until the summit is over, but the reports coming out of Israel could also be a negotiating tactic.

Various published reports say Jerusalem is a key point of dispute. Israel refuses to see it divided, but Palestinians want a chunk as the capital of their state.

Deadline Extended

Clinton was originally scheduled to leave for Tokyo this morning. He is now expected to arrive in Japan on Friday for the Group of Eight economic summit, one day later than scheduled, and skip a planned Tokyo stopover. The G-8 meeting is set to take place in Okinawa.

This presumed deadline gives negotiators an additional day to reach an accord. But the issues that remain are not easy: an impasse over Jerusalem’s future is reportedly blocking the negotiations. As the president’s departure approaches, negotiators may choose whether to try to wrap up talks, stay at Camp David in Clinton’s absence until Sunday, or risk squandering what momentum they have built up by leaving the Maryland retreat.