[Leon Harris, Cnn Anchor:] The Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are gathering momentum in Washington with President Clinton and Secretary of State Madeline Albright now involved. Our State Department correspondent Andrea Koppel is also involved. She's here with us this morning to give us a live report Andrea.
[Andrea Koppel, Cnn Correspondent:] Good morning, Leon. We're at the start of day three of these high stake peace talks, which are supposed to run until Saturday, but could easily last even longer. Today, Secretary of State Madeline Albright will head out to Bolling Air Force Base to continue separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators. Both sides all too aware of the fact this could very well be the Clinton Administration's final push for peace before President Clinton leaves office next month.
[Koppel:] The meeting lasted 45 minutes, part pep talk, part information gathering. President Clinton and his advisers squared off across from Israeli and Palestinian negotiators. Everyone in the room aware the president's time is short and the issues complex.
[P.j. Crowley, White House Spokesman:] As always, we're prepared to help to do whatever we can to support the peace process, move them closer to an agreement, but what we do from this point on will really depend on the progress that they make during the course of this week.
[Koppel:] But after two days of talks, both sides seem to have quite a different opinion as to just how things were going.
[Shlomo Ben-ami, Israeli Foreign Minister:] The feeling is that these were very, very serious negotiations with a spirit that may lead to the conclusion of an agreement, if we maintain the same spirit throughout.
[Saeb Erakat, Palestinian Negotiator:] I don't want raise anybody's expectations. We are having very, very serious discussions, but at the same time, we're facing measured difficulties and serious differences.
[Koppel:] The very same differences and difficulties faced during weeks of unsuccessful negotiations at Camp David last July, now further complicated by months of bloody clashes. Those so-called "final status issues" at the heart of any final peace deal include: the borders, or how much land there'd be for a Palestinian state; sovereignty over Jerusalem, including the Old City; the right of return for Palestinian refugees; and the fate of Israeli settlements built on captured Jordanian and Egyptian land. The challenge for U.S. mediators sequestered with both delegations at Bolling Air Force Base this week to make enough progress on these issues to warrant bringing Yasser Arafat and Ehud Barak together with President Clinton for one last try. The message from the Clinton administration: As long as there's a shot at peace, Leon, they'll be on the job until January 20 Leon.
[Harris:] Is that shot they're taking there at peace being complicated at all by this mixed up picture of the Israeli prime minister's race right now?
[Koppel:] Yes, in some ways, it is. I mean, both President Clinton's departure and the possible departure of Ehud Barak in early February certainly affecting the negotiations here in this way. Ehud Barak's campaign, both 17 months ago and right now, are based on the fact that he wants to deliver a peace deal to the Israeli people. If he is able to do that, Leon, that's only going to help his prospects at winning reelection. In addition, the man he's running against, Ariel Sharon, is a hard-liner Likud member, who has said all along that he would be much tougher on the Palestinians than Ehud Barak. So that is, as well, weighing on the minds of the Palestinians here Leon.
[Harris:] Nothing is ever simple. Nothing is ever simple there. Andrea Koppel, thanks much, we'll talk to you later on.