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White House Anticipating Meeting With Ariel Sharon

Aired May 03, 2002 - 14:06   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Also, in Israel, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his cabinet today talked about buffer zones between the Israelis and the Palestinians. He is expected to present that plan to President Bush when he meets with him in Washington next week. Tuesday is the meeting there.

Straight away to the White House, and for more on the Middle East, with our senior White House correspondent, John King.

John, good afternoon.

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Bill.

The White House certainly having a great sense of anticipation in advance of that Sharon meeting. And that will put to the test, if you will, just how much progress might be made at this upcoming peace conference or conference on the Middle East crisis, anyway. Some afraid to call it a peace conference. They believe that might raise the expectations too much.

Certainly President Bush, in his conversations with P.M. Sharon, as well as the next day, on Wednesday, here at the White House, with the Jordanian monarch, King Abdullah, trying to explore just what the agenda for that conference should be.

We know that security issues will be discussed. We know that the international leaders also want to discuss economic and humanitarian aid for the Palestinians.

The big question, of course, is can you get agreement on an accelerated time table for negotiations. That would put to the test, at this time still of some violence, as you just noted, and great tension, as to whether the Israelis and the Palestinians, after nearly two years now, are prepared to sit at the table and talk peace again.

Many believe that is an unrealistic expectation, but many also believe this administration and its allies have no choice but to try -- Bill.

HEMMER: John, on a different front, there is talk now between the United States and Russia, forging some sort of agreement here to reduce warheads all over the planet, essentially.

What kind of progress, and how do we rate the significance on these talks and developments today?

KING: Apparently, a breakthrough in the offing, and hugely significant. A story, the negotiations, overshadowed, first by the war on terrorism, now by the crisis in the Middle East, but the Russian foreign minister here in Washington.

He met with President Bush in the Oval Office earlier today, then emerged from that meeting to say, in his words, there was a, quote, "very high probability" that he will finish negotiations with secretary of state Colin Powell, at least on all the major, fundamental points of a formal treaty, under which both countries, Russia and the United States, will agree to cut by roughly two-thirds their strategic nuclear arsenals, down from the 6,000 range to the 2,000 range, perhaps even lower.

So it looks like, again, the negotiations continuing, but both sides voicing optimism that when the president travels to Moscow three weeks from now, he will sign with President Putin a formal treaty, cutting those nuclear arsenals, a dramatic development, of course.

We're told the last hang-up in the negotiations has been over the issues of whether those warheads should go into storage or be destroyed. The Russians put a counterproposal on the table recently that sources on both sides say has moved those negotiations to the point where it appears they are reaching the point of a breakthrough -- Bill.

HEMMER: And as you say, appropriately, an issue that has been lost in the post-09-11 world.

Thank you, John. John King on the front lawn there.

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