Barak ends talks with Sharon after phone call from Clinton

JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Ehud Barak, amid objections from U.S. President Bill Clinton, has again suspended efforts to establish a coalition with his right-wing opposition.

Barak failed to mention his drive for a so-called national emergency government during an address to the Knesset on Monday. Hours earlier, Barak aides said the prime minister and Likud chairman Ariel Sharon had made progress toward such a coalition.

Deputy Prime Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer acknowledged the suspension of Barak's efforts. Ben-Eliezer said Barak has been summoned to meet Clinton in Washington to discuss a revival of the peace process and this prevents any agreement with Sharon.

"What happened is that President Clinton turned to the prime minister and said 'Give us another week so I can bring here [Palestinian Authority Chairman] Yasser Arafat,'" Ben-Eliezer said. "What does he expect we tell him: 'Sorry, we're not interested?' I think that we have to give him a week or two weeks."

Clinton is said to oppose a Barak-led government that would include Sharon. Barak and Clinton spoke on the telephone on Monday amid a suspension of future meetings between the prime minister and the opposition leader.

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Nawaf Masalha said Clinton wants to torpedo a Labor-Likud government by proposing a mini-Palestinian state as an interim measure until peace negotiations are resumed with the Palestinians. Masalha told the London-based A-Sharq Al Awsat daily on Tuesday that the United States will probably not resume the peace process until June. The minister cited the prospect of Israeli elections in April and a new U.S. administration.

"Barak assesses that he will win early elections next April despite failing to obtain the support of the Arab sector in Israel and 12 Arab Knesset members," Masalha said.

Clinton administration spokespeople denied that the White House was involved in Barak's negotiations with Sharon. "That's internal to the Israeli political system and they'll have to decide how they proceed," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.

Meanwhile, Barak wooed his former right-wing partners in the coalition. Shas, an Orthodox Jewish faction with 17 members in parliament, has pledged not to topple the government over the next four weeks in exchange for a Barak commitment to suspend plans to dismantle the Shas-controlled Religious Affairs Ministry.

Aides to Barak said he will not agree to any short-term unity government. They said Barak is seeking political stability for at least the next 18 months, something that Sharon cannot guarantee.

Likud leaders said Barak was never serious about a government with the opposition. "Ehud Barak is a liar," Likud Knesset member Lior Livnat said. "He is a manipulator."