Arafat and Peres at Majorca forum

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat meets Spain's King Juan Carlos, left, at the Zarzuela Palace

MAJORCA, Spain (CNN) -- Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has arrived at a Mediterranean conference ahead of a possible meeting with Israel's Foreign Minister Shimon Peres.

Both will be attending the Euro-Mediterranean Forum on the Spanish island and are anticipated to meet informally over the weekend.

It would be the first time the two would have held talks since September 26, during which time dozens of people have been killed in the Mideast, including the Israeli ultra-nationalist tourism minister, Rechavam Zeevi.

Arafat arrived on Friday, following a brief meeting with Spain's King Juan Carlos on the mainland.

Arafat and Peres will be holed up at an isolated luxury hotel on Majorca, where security is tight.

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The two are scheduled to appear jointly at a forum session on Saturday morning, but there has been intense interest ahead of a possible meeting between them -- possibly as early as Friday.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will be the keynote speaker at the forum, which brings together 15 nations and the Palestinian Authority to discuss economic and political issues.

The Middle East is expected to be a principal theme of the conference. All the expected participants border, or are near, the Mediterranean Sea.

Earlier this week, Peres described the outline of his new peace initiative, but Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said later that it would be he who would head any new peace initiatives.

There were reports from Israel that any possible meeting between Peres and Arafat might be simply a low-profile encounter.

The nations expected to attend are: Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Syria, Lebanon, Tunisia, Jordan and Israel.

The Palestinian Authority and the European Union executive branch are also to send representatives.