PRESIDENT Clinton spoke by telephone with President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt about the Israeli Palestinian talks on Hebron, the White House said yesterday.
The White House spokesman, Mr Mike McCurry, disclosed the contact as signs mounted that agreement on an Israeli withdrawal from Hebron was near. Mr McCurry told reporters there had been progress in the talks, but said differences still remained.
Mr Clinton called Mr Mubarak "to exchange views with him on the status of the dialogue" and get Mr Mubarak's insights "into the thinking of those who are negotiating," Mr McCurry said.
Egypt has blamed Israel for the tortoise like pace of the talks, saying Israel had taken rigid positions and had tried to put pressure on the Palestinian negotiators.
A PLO official said negotiators, meeting at a Jerusalem hotel, could conclude a deal within hours thanks to a compromise reached on Sunday for Israel to complete three troop withdrawals from West Bank areas by mid 1998.
The compromise was hammered during a lightning mediation mission by King Hussein of Jordan.
Mr McCurry said Mr Clinton had received regular reports on the talks from his peace envoy, Mr Dennis Ross, the US deputy national security adviser, Mr Samuel Berger, and others, and had "offered some thoughts" on how to resolve differences that have been stalling an agreement.
Cautioning reporters against being "excessively forward leaning", Mr McCurry said: "We are not encouraging people to leap to exuberant degrees of optimism."
EU attempts to mediate were unlikely to clash with US efforts as both sides of the Atlantic were cooperating closely, the Dutch Foreign Minister, Mr Hans Van Mierlo, said in Lisbon.
Asked if there was a danger that EU mediation in the Middle East could clash with US diplomacy, Mr Van Mierlo told a news conference: "Everything is possible. But it's not likely."
"Mr Dennis Ross and [the EU envoy] Mr Miguel Angel Moratinos are cooperating very, very well and are in constant touch. They both play an important role in what is going on today," added. "There are sometimes different views and sometimes different interests. But you don't solve it by running away from it. You discuss it and try to find a common approach," Mr Van Mierlo said.