Arafat, Peres meet in Brussels

Arafat met Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, right, ahead of an EU-Mediterranean meeting of foreign ministers

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres met for dinner Monday night at the Belgian prime minister's residence, but what words the two exchanged remained largely unknown.

The Associated Press reported that journalists outside Belgian Prime Minster Guy Verhofstadt's residence got a glimpse of the dinner, and saw Arafat and Peres gesturing.

The meeting marked the second time the two have met in recent days. Arafat and Peres, in Brussels for an European Union-Mediterranean conference of foreign ministers, met briefly last week at an economic conference in Spain. They last held substantive peace talks on September 26, when they discussed terms to implement a Mideast cease-fire.

Each has said their governments are committed to finding a peaceful solution to the violence and tension in the Middle East.

At a news conferences with Verhofstadt before the dinner, Arafat said he was ready to meet with Peres and was "fully committed" to making peace.

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Arafat also told reporters that he appreciated Belgium's peace-making efforts.

"We will implement all the suggestions made by Belgium and Europe in this regard and ... make every effort possible to thwart any terrorist operation in our area," Reuters quoted Arafat as saying.

"What we are doing is important because it should serve notice to all those who are creating terrorism and problems in the world, particularly after the horrible terrorism we have seen in New York and Washington," he said.

"I want to reiterate that we are strategically committed to the peace process," Arafat said.

In a separate news conference, Peres downplayed prospects for the pending meeting with Arafat. "Just because we meet doesn't mean that all our problems are suddenly resolved," he said.

EU Commission President Romano Prodi also met Arafat on Monday, then called for the United States, the EU, Russia, Israel and Arab states to get peace talks moving again.

"We cannot go on with a situation of blood and fighting which is destroying entire communities," The Associated Press quoted Prodi as saying.

Verhofstadt, whose country holds the EU presidency, said he and Arafat had discussed "new minimal security measures" to calm the violence, according to Reuters, but he did not specify what they were.

Verhofstadt had said he would discuss the security measures with Peres and possibly meet Arafat again, Reuters reported.

This week's EU-Mediterranean conference is noteworthy because all 12 Mediterranean partners -- including Syria and Lebanon, which boycotted the event last year to protest Israel's presence -- have agreed to attend.

The EU's Mediterranean initiative was launched in 1995 with the goal of establishing a free trade zone in 2010. Since then, the EU has pumped nearly $9 billion into region to support peace and boost Europe's peacemaking influence.