The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Rome

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said Friday he hoped this weekend's Mediterranean Union summit in Paris would boost prospects for peace with Israel.

"This summit can give positive momentum to the peace process and could lead to more economic support for the Palestinian Authority," Abbas said at a joint news conference with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Berlusconi for his part said the conclusion of peace negotiations "had never been closer" and that U.S. President George W. Bush, who he met at the recent G8 summit in Japan, was optimistic about the chance of reaching an agreement before 2009.

Berlusconi said he had offered to host talks between Israel and the Palestinians at Erice in Sicily. He did not provide further details. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Abbas will meet face to face in Paris on Sunday at the launch of the Mediterranean Union, a flagship project of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The grouping will see the 27 countries from the European Union join states in north Africa and the Middle East, bringing leaders from Israel, Syria, Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority to the same table despite their unresolved peace issues.