Visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas promised here Sunday a referendum before any peace agreement with Israel.
Abbas made the promise in a press conference during his visit to Tunisia from where he travels to Washington on Tuesday.
Any peace agreement to be reached between the Palestinian and Israeli negotiating teams will be referred to the people in a referendum, Abbas told the reporters.
Abbas, meanwhile, welcomed current efforts exerted by former U.S. president Jimmy Carter and other sides, like Yemen, to end the inter-Palestinian differences.
The Palestinian leader noted that he will hold talks with U.S. President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the development of the peace negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel, hoping a deal with Israel can be reached by the end of the year.
"I will focus in my talks with President Bush and American officials on the negotiations and on ending talks with an agreement this year," Abbas said.
However, he stressed that he does not want the outcome of Israeli-Palestinian talks to end with a vague declaration of principles.
Abbas arrived here earlier on Sunday for a two-day visit at the invitation of Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali.
The two leaders are expected to hold talks on bilateral issues and discuss the latest development of the situation in the Middle East, Tunisia's official TAP news agency reported on Saturday.
Source:Xinhua
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