'Quartet' proposes Mideast peace conference

Powell speaks during a news conference at the State Department in Washington, Thursday with Annan, left, and Solana.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Top American, U.N., European and Russian diplomats Thursday plan a new international conference and "serious and accelerated negotiations" to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The conference could by held by early summer, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told reporters Thursday afternoon. Discussions among the four powers were given a boost by Wednesday's peaceful resolution to the Israeli siege of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Ramallah headquarters.

"This is a time for prompt action to take advantage of this new window of opportunity that has been presented to us, and we intend to do just that," Powell said.

The so-called Madrid Quartet includes representatives from the European Union, the United Nations, Russia and the United States. The group first met in Madrid, Spain, last month.

Details such as the date, location and participants of any Middle East conference still must be worked out, Powell said. But another senior official familiar with the discussions said Europe is a likely location.

The conference probably will include only foreign ministers, rather than heads of state, to get around the "distraction" over whether Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon would attend the same meeting or speak with each other, the senior official said.

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Powell's announcement came after President Bush discussed the conference proposal at a White House meeting with European leaders. U.S. officials said there would be follow-up discussions about setting a date for the conference after Bush's discussions next week with Sharon and Jordan's King Abdullah II.

"Everyone wants to be there, but there is a school of thought that you have a show or something productive," the senior official said. "The idea of a dozen or so people who can sit and actually work is what is most appealing."

Powell was joined in Washington by Javier Solana, the European Union's high representative; Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Pique; U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan; and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov.

Top U.S. officials are cautious when asked whether they believe -- as Arab states and many European diplomats do -- that the parties should go directly into comprehensive peace talks and avoid incremental steps. Such a "quantum leap" approach, as one senior White House aide put it, could be counterproductive if the Israelis and Palestinians are not prepared to make tough choices.

Annan said Thursday's talks also included discussion of a possible multinational force for the region, which Israel has consistently opposed. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has generated so much "mistrust and emnity" that a third party is needed to help both sides move ahead, Annan said.

"The idea of the force was to help create a secure and calm environment that will allow for reconstruction, delivery of humanitarian assistance, and as we try to strengthen Palestinian institutions -- including security, so that they can honor their commitments, as you've heard the secretary of state talk about reconstruction and rebuilding of institutions," Annan said. "And I thought the presence would also give us the space that we need to continue political and diplomatic discussions."

Powell said the Bush administration is prepared to put American observers into the region to monitor a cease-fire, but "that's as far as we had gotten with respect to monitors who would be acceptable to both sides."

The quartet representatives also pledged to work to rebuild the economy of the Palestinian territories and help reconstruct an "effective and responsible" Palestinian security apparatus. CIA Director George Tenet is likely to play "an important role" in that effort, Powell said.

How to rebuild and enhance the security capability of the Palestinian Authority while screening out extremist elements tied to terrorist groups has been a topic of intense debate among U.S. officials. They say they are examining ways to create a Palestinian security apparatus that is independent of the Palestinian Authority. Those ideas are in their infancy, they caution.

"We want to make sure the reconstitution is clean and stays clean," one senior U.S. official said.

Powell called on Israel to immediately lift its closures of Palestinian areas and border crossings and said the quartet would work to create "accountable, democratic and market-oriented institutions" as the foundation of a future Palestinian state.

"The people in the region are in great need," he said. "The Palestinian people need access to jobs, need access to markets, need food, need medical supplies, need all kinds of things to relieve their suffering, and we are united in our determination to bring that about."

-- CNN correspondents John King and Andrea Koppel and producer Elise Labott contributed to this report.