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FOCUS OF TALKS NOW IS PROGRESS, SAYS RUBIN

Spokesman says pace and substance of work continues

Chesapeake College, Maryland -- Following is the transcript of State Department Spokesman James P. Rubin's briefing to the press the evening of October 21:

(Begin transcript)

Readout by Telephone to the Press
By James P. Rubin
Chesapeake College
October 21, 1998
(10:20 P.M.)

MR. RUBIN: Let me just say, obviously it has been an interesting evening. What we're going to try to do over the course of the night is continue to work on them in a serious way so we can keep our focus on the substantive need for progress and not so much on the atmospherics.

QUESTION: You are going to pull an all-nighter, is that what you are saying?

MR. RUBIN: People are going to continue to work. I gather Joe Lockhart has made clear that the President is in for the night and the Secretary will report to him in the morning about where we are and what constructive role she thinks he could play.

QUESTION: Have you given the paper to the parties?

MR. RUBIN: I don't believe that has happened yet.

QUESTION: You've got about an hour and half are you going to make your initial (inaudible)?

MR. RUBIN: I'll check back in.

QUESTION: Do you think that threat of releasing the paper or tabling the paper and the possible release later is what persuaded the Israelis to stay?

MR. RUBIN: I don't want to try to get into that.

QUESTION: A simple yes will do.

MR. RUBIN: I don't want to make that judgment at this point. What we are trying to do is keep our eye on the ball, and the ball is progress in the peace process.

QUESTION: Can you describe some of the diplomacy of who met with whom during the course of the last several hours?

MR. RUBIN: The Secretary and all her people and all the experts have been over at the bench house attached to the River House, which is where the Israelis are. The Secretary spoke to King Hussein a couple of times and urged him to talk to the two leaders. Then obviously the experts have been working in a variety of ways over there.

QUESTION: The Palestinians say that there is a security agreement. Would you confirm that?

MR. RUBIN: All I can say, as I indicated earlier, is that serious work has been and continues to be done on that.

QUESTION: But you wouldn't challenge that assertion?

MR. RUBIN: I just don't want to go beyond what I just said.

QUESTION: Did the President call the Prime Minister today, I mean this evening?

MR. RUBIN: I don't believe so. Joe would know better, but I don't think so.

QUESTION: Is King Hussein invited here for tomorrow?

MR. RUBIN: I don't think any decision has been made.

QUESTION: Did the US ever believe that the Israelis were going to leave?

MR. RUBIN: We went about our work in a serious way and the work continued throughout and we weren't set off our course, which is to keep our eye on the ball called progress. That is what we have been doing all evening.

QUESTION: Earlier you called this a roller coaster summit and you said that this was an interesting night. Any further thoughts along those lines?

MR. RUBIN: I think you can put those two together all by yourself.

QUESTION: Well, do you feel you are much closer to an agreement now with the Palestinians saying they have reached an agreement on security, which seems to be the critical issue here?

MR. RUBIN: I don't think it is the only issue, but we will have to see. This is one of those situations in which one doesn't have any optimism until it's over and it's not over.

QUESTION: But does it seem more optimistic even though you don't have full optimism?

MR. RUBIN: I just don't want to make that judgment. We have been through too much over the 18 months to try make that judgment.

QUESTION: How much longer do you think it will go on?

MR. RUBIN: It's hard to know but we will be working tonight and tomorrow clearly.

QUESTION: Have you gotten any sense about the President's schedule. Is there any indication he will come here tomorrow?

MR. RUBIN: I think that judgment will be made in the morning.

QUESTION: The Israeli Prime Minister's statement did not actually clarify this. They said they are willing to continue the talks, so that means the Mideast summit could continue beyond tomorrow.

MR. RUBIN: As I have told you all for, unfortunately, seven days now, we are taking it one day at a time.

QUESTION: Jamie, just to try to figure out what was gained by the Israelis' threat to leave, I think you called it a rolling document. Can you say whether or not there were changes in whatever you had in hand in mid-afternoon, let's say eight or six hours later. In other words, did Netanyahu's threat to leave cause the United States to revise in any way its set of security propositions?

MR. RUBIN: I'd rather not give you that kind of snap shot of what we are doing, other than to say that the pace and the substance of our work has continued without distraction throughout the last couple of days.

QUESTION: Let me take out the cause and effect. You called it a rolling document, I think. Did it continue to roll through the day? Did it undergo changes through the evening, the night?

MR. RUBIN: I'd have to check with the drafters. I don't know the answer to that.

QUESTION: The drafters being Indyk and Ross?

MR. RUBIN: There are a lot of people involved in drafting, well beyond that.

QUESTION: Are there any meetings scheduled between the Israelis and the Palestinians?

MR. RUBIN: Scheduled, I don't think so as of now.

QUESTION: Jamie, do you know if King Hussein did call any of the delegation members?

MR. RUBIN: I think he spoke to both the Prime Minister and the Chairman.

QUESTION: Do you know when that happened?

MR. RUBIN: Early evening.

QUESTION: What role, if any, did Chairman Arafat play this afternoon and into this evening?

MR. RUBIN: Well, most of the contact was between us and the Israelis, and I think the King wanted to check in with him on -- keep him focused on the seriousness of the work in hand and not the atmospherics.

QUESTION: Have the Palestinians seen the security document?

MR. RUBIN: I just can't get into that level of detail.

QUESTION: What detail? Have the Palestinians seen it?

MR. RUBIN: Only one "no" is enough, I hope. Only one non-answer is enough for you, I hope.

QUESTION: Have both sides now seen the security agreement?

MR. RUBIN: I'm just not going to get into that.

QUESTION: Can you say if there was a heated exchange between Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Secretary of State today?

MR. RUBIN: I sense she was quite calm in approaching the problem and I didn't sense there was any different tone on his side.

QUESTION: Did they ask you to arrange any logistical arrangement?

MR. RUBIN: As I indicated earlier, we were providing whatever logistical arrangements they sought out the afternoon and evening.

QUESTION: But did they ask for some?

MR. RUBIN: Yes.

QUESTION: Logistical arrangements for them to unpack, or return from the airport?

MR. RUBIN: I don't know how much work was done on the logistical side, just that the Secretary's instructions were to give them whatever logistical assistance was needed.

QUESTION: Jamie, did any of the committees meet today at all.

MR. RUBIN: This was not a committee day.

QUESTION: One other question. How come you haven't brought Gore in on this? He has a lot of influence with the Israelis.

MR. RUBIN: Well he was here over the weekend.

QUESTION: Yes, I realize that. But what about today?

MR. RUBIN: I don't think either the President or the Vice-President were talking.

QUESTION: Jamie, could you just clarify what is going to happen with the US plan? Will it be presented some time in the next --

MR. RUBIN: When I know more about that I will call in.

QUESTION: Okay.

QUESTION: One last question. Tibi said today that the third withdrawal is definitely a part of this agreement. Is that correct?

MR. RUBIN: I don't want to get into that right now.

QUESTION: Jamie, do you plan on any more calls this evening?

MR. RUBIN: If I have something to say about the text, I will. But I think the important news for you has occurred.

QUESTION: One more question. Jamie, can you please do get back to us on the text, because earlier today you said the plan was to present it. So we have to know.

MR. RUBIN: Our hope and expectation was.

QUESTION: Can you get back and let us know if that hope and expectation was realized?

MR. RUBIN: Yes. I will try.

QUESTION: Thank you.

(End transcript)