The right-wing government of Israeli prime minister Mr Ariel Sharon yesterday voted to accept the US-backed road map for peace, the first formal endorsement by Israel of the establishment of a Palestinian state, writes Peter Hirschberg from Jerusalem
The 12-7 vote with four abstentions paved the way for a possible three-way summit somewhere in the region in early June, between President Bush, Mr Sharon and his Palestinian counterpart, Mr Mahmoud Abbas.
There was also talk last night of a second meeting between Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas - the two met nine days ago - within the next few days.
The Israeli leader told his ministers during a six-hour debate that while a Palestinian state was not his "life's dream", Israel could not continue to control the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.
But the Israeli government acceptance of the road map, which calls for the creation of a provisional Palestinian state by the end of the year and a fully independent state by 2005, was not unqualified. While the cabinet approved steps outlined in the road map, it did not approve the document itself.
Mr Sharon has presented reservations regarding the plan to the US, and the government decision included these. It also included a repudiation of any practical implementation of the right of return for Palestinian refugees, one of the major stumbling blocks in previous peace talks.
Ministers in Mr Sharon's ruling Likud party who voted in favour of the plan were unenthusiastic. Foreign minister, Mr Silvan Shalom, described it as "one of my most difficult days ever" but said the government's acceptance of the road map was vital in "preserving (Israel's) close relations with the US, and our international standing".