News Blackout on Day 2 of Mideast Summit
T H U R M O N T, Md., July 12 -- Mideast leaders meeting at a historic summit at Camp David have put on the table all the “core issues” of a final status agreement during “a busy day” of negotiations, the White House said today.
That means Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat are discussing the future of Jerusalem as a capital city — an emotionally charged subject that peacemakers had avoided raising until now.
“It’s been a busy day,” White House spokesman Joe Lockhart told reporters late this afternoon. “There has been real engagement among the parties.”
Lockhart gave these glimpses into the summit at two press conferences today — but he didn’t reveal much more.
Mindful of news leaks that have plagued Mideast summits in the past, the White House has stressed that no information would be forthcoming about the substance of the talks.
Earlier, Lockhart told journalists he had “no intention over the next few days to provide progress reports,”
“The delegations know each other well; they know the issues well,” he said. “And I think the best thing to do is allow the parties to try to work through thosedifferences.”
The White House emphasized the difficulty of trying to narrow differences that have led to more than a half-century of conflict.
“They are working in a very serious way,” Lockhart said. “But we certainly know that this effort from the beginning will be a struggle.”
Enhanced by Informality
Lockhart, who as the official spokesman is living in a cabin at Camp David during the summit, made a point of explaining that the informal atmoshpere at the rustic compound enhanced contact among the delegations.
But he added that he was not trying to play down “the seriousness and the problems they face here.”
He said food is served virtually around the clock in Laurel Lodge cabin, but the dining room is deliberately set with only three large communal tables so diplomats are encouraged to sit in groups. As Lockhart ate breakfast today, he shared a table with three Palestinian and two Israeli negotiators.
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