Erekat: 'Mitchell meetings did not advance trilateral summit'

             A senior Palestinian official said on Friday that U.S. Mideast envoy George Mitchell has ended his latest shuttle without agreement on terms for renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians or for setting a trilateral summit. Envoy George Mitchell had hoped to lay the groundwork for such a meeting next week, perhaps also attended by President Barack Obama at the periphery of next week's United Nation General Assembly in New York. But chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, speaking to European Union consuls in Jerusalem, said the Palestinians are sticking to their demand for a total halt to Israeli settlement activity before talks can take place. "There is no agreement yet with the Israeli side and no middle ground solution," Erekat said. Beyond the settlement freeze issue, Erekat added that the current stalemate also centered on setting the agenda for peace talks, and the Palestinian demand to include core issues such as the future status of Jerusalem and the return of Palestinian refugees. The demand effectively rejects an offer by President Shimon Peres which proposed that new talks would center exclusively on border disputes. The Palestinians added that they were also disappointed by the American refusal to declare the borders of June 4, 1967 as the official border between Israel and a future Palestinian state. Israeli officials had no immediate comment on Erekat's statement. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Mideast envoy George Mitchell had met again on Friday morning in an attempt at advancing a trilateral summit. Following the meeting, Mitchell departed for Ramallah to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. It was reported that Mitchell could return for another round of talks with Netanyahu after his meeting with Abbas. On Thursday, senior U.S. officials told Haaretz that Friday's meeting will resolve all differences in order to open the door for holding talks in New York. The Palestinians are refusing to meet with Netanyahu unless he declares a comprehensive freeze on settlement activity, including in East Jerusalem. Mitchell also met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah II of Jordan during his current visit to the region, and asked them to exert pressure on Abbas to soften his stance so that a meeting can take place at the UN. Mitchell also asked the two Arab leaders to rally the Arab world in undertaking goodwill gestures toward Israel. Netanyahu went on to meet with Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef at his Jerusalem home after the conclusion of his meeting with Mitchell. Sources said that in the meeting, which was also attended by Shas chairman Eli Yishai, the spiritual leader of the religious faction congratulated the PM for his firm diplomatic stance and awarded him with a Rosh Hashanah gift.