The United States reportedly expects Ehud Olmert and Mahmoud Abbas to outline the borders of a future Palestinian state by next week.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who on Monday wrapped up a 48-hour trip to Israel and the Palestinian Authority, asked the Israeli prime minister and Palestinian Authority president to reach a preliminary border deal by next week, Israel’s Channel 2 reported.
According to the television station, the outline would be unveiled when President Bush visits Israel May 13 to celebrate the country’s 60th Independence Day.
Officials in Jerusalem and Ramallah had no immediate comment on the report, though they earlier said that Olmert and Abbas have made significant progress in talks on borders.
The sides have yet to broach the more intractable issues of the status of Jerusalem and fate of Palestinian refugees.
