Q: Hello.

AMBASSADOR RABINOVICH: Hello. Good morning.

Q: How's it going, Ambassador? Where do we stand on the agreement --

AMB. RABINOVICH: It will be Jerusalem that will be making the announcement on the status...

With regard to the Palestinian agreement, we hear optimistic reports, but definitive, authoritative announcements will be made in Jerusalem, not here by us.

Q: Mr. Ambassador, Uri Savir said this morning in Paris that "agreement was reached," quote, unquote.

AMB. RABINOVICH: Yes.

Q: Would you --

AMB. RABINOVICH: Well, I'm delighted he did. We have not received official word that it has been finalized. I'm delighted that Uri Savir is reported to have made that statement. As I said, we do hear optimistic reports, but we will not be the ones here to issue the statement. That statement will come out of Jerusalem.

Q: Well would you guide as away from what Mr. Savir is saying?

AMB. RABINOVICH: Pardon?

Q: Would you guide us away?

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, I'm not guiding you -- no, not at all. I'm saying I'm delighted that he made -- that he is reported to have made a statement. As I said, we also hear optimistic reports, but we wait official word from Jerusalem. And as I said to you, official announcements, definitive announcements, will come from Jerusalem.

Q: Mr. Ambassador, what do you think about Monday? Would these negotiations continue, in your view, should they continue? Should there be a pause when this agreement is signed or --

AMB. RABINOVICH: Well, the round is to end in any event on Monday, so there is no point of continuing the negotiations beyond Monday. Monday itself, the schedule -- nobody's schedule is definite yet in any event. So we are continuing today as usual. The peace process and the negotiations with Syria continue as usual regardless of what precisely transpires on Monday.

Q: Can you give us a status report on the Israeli-Jordanian agreement that has tentatively been reached?

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, nothing authoritative. That is to say, there was a draft of a Jordanian-Israeli agenda that was finalized several months ago, or almost finalized several months ago. The news was first released by the Jordanians. It was not finalized; the last two inches of the agreement were not bridged at the time and no signing or initialing was done at the time. There now is a much better prospect of finalizing the agenda and signing it at some future point. Q Mr. Ambassador, I know it's a highly hypothetical question, (but I'd like to ask anyway ?). If there is a signing ceremony Monday, at what level would you expect the document to be signed? Who --

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, it really is highly hypothetical, and I said as long as we do not have final closure on the agreement we do not deal, certainly not in public, with details of the signing ceremony.

Q: And would you mind giving us sort of a status report -- or maybe it would be better to ask you at your departure, but a status report on your negotiations on the Syrian track?

AMB. RABINOVICH: It really would be better to do it as we come out, if you don't mind.

One last question in Hebrew.

Q: (In Hebrew.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: (In Hebrew.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: Hello. With your permission, we'll do it swiftly today. I'm in a hurry.

Q: Will you continue talking on Monday?

AMB. RABINOVICH: We plan to, unless there is a signing ceremony which would change our timetable and plans. But in terms of the Syrian-Israeli track, we are on for Monday, as I said, unless other circumstances intervene.

Q: Mr. Allaf said you had new ideas today you discussed with him. Could you please elaborate on the ideas --

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, I'd rather not elaborate. I'd just describe the areas; they deal with the framework of paragraph five, the relationship between the preamble to that paragraph and the actual sub-paragraphs; and then the -- some formulations regarding security that we went back to with a view to trying to finalize agreement in that paragraph on which some significant progress has been made during this round.

Q: (Off mike.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: About?

Q: Your ideas -- (off mike) --

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, it's -- you know, when we finalize them we'll speak about them in greater detail. For the time being, I'd rather remain at this level of generality.

Q: (Off mike.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: Pardon?

Q: What are the obstacles so far?

AMB. RABINOVICH: Well, the obstacle is still the Syrian inability to explain to us the precise nature of the peace that we could have, and to come to an agreement on security as the right basis on which we can elaborate and develop and articulate our precise and full position with regard to withdrawal.

Q: Did the Syrians accept your ideas? I mean, is this going anywhere?

AMB. RABINOVICH: They have not yet fully accepted. But is it going anywhere? Yes, it's going places because there is a real give and take, there is a real dialogue.

Q: (Off mike.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: Well, almost, but not quite. And, you know, this may not be a huge distance, but a distance it is, and it's something that -- it's a very crucial and sensitive issue and it's difficult to finalize an agreement.

Q: (Off mike.)

AMB. RABINOVICH: No, I think we are both determined to issue a comprehensive declaration of principles and not to break it down to each segment.

Thank you very much.