London - The US Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, met the Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, yesterday after inviting him to London at short notice to discuss stalled Middle East peace efforts. Mr Arafat flew from Oslo, where he had been attending a Socialist International meeting. He said he hoped Ms Albright had achieved something with the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, but a senior US official, Mr Martin Indyk, dampened hopes of a breakthrough.
Earlier Mr Arafat's speech in Norway - where he met the SDLP leader, Mr John Hume - was far from optimistic. "The (Israeli) government is not serious about a real, just and permanent peace that provides security for all," he said.