The three-way summit between US President Bill Clinton, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak ended about one hour after it began.

"We have revitalized the process," Clinton said after the talks. "The two sides have not only named their teams, they have agreed that the leaders will personally continue to meet on a regular

basis."

The summit was about one hour behind schedule and also one hour shorted than previously expected. Clinton said he felt they had completed a "very good meeting."

He said the two sides have agreed to avoid causing trouble to each other before they come to a framework agreement in mid-February, and to have a summit at the end of the process.

Now the two sides are committed to a framework agreement by February and a final accord by September 2000.

A senior Palestinian official said that he was "confident that a Camp David-style summit is possible in January if enough progress has been made in final status talks."

Israeli and Egyptian leaders met in Camp David in 1978 and reached a peace accord, the first between the Jewish state and an Arab country.

The two sides have agreed to establish a new mechanism to facilitate their talks and prevent waste of time in the final status talks, to be kicked off on November 8, said the official, who requested anonymity.

The negotiating teams would work four days a week and report directly to their leaders, and a hotline is expected to be set up

between Arafat and Barak, he said.

The much expected meeting came after Clinton met Arafat and Barak

separately, and Arafat and Barak made an unscheduled one-to-one meeting Monday night.

Palestinian officials present at the meeting said the mood was optimistic, and Barak was willing to touch upon any sensitive issues.

But the two sides did not get into essence for fear this could sour the atmosphere, the officials said.

At the summit, the three leaders had been expected to focus on ways to approach the toughest final status issues and inject new vitality into the peace process. But neither side anticipated a major breakthrough.

Clinton told reporters at the start of the summit: "I think even though the issues are difficult, the will is strong and we are off to a pretty good start."

He offered to do anything he could to help the two sides to achieve peace.

This is the first such summit since Barak ousted his hardline predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, in Israel's general elections in May. The three leaders are here for a commemoration ceremony earlier Tuesday for late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was killed by an extremist Jew opposed to his peace policies.

The Palestinian side has urged for quick implementation of signed

agreements and start of talks on final status issues. They cited Israel's continuous settlement policy as a threat to the entire peace process.

Barak, a Rabin protege, has vowed to continue the journey started

by Rabin toward a lasting peace with Israel's neighbors.

Clinton left for home after winding up his two-day visit here, and Arafat was flown to Budapest, Hungry, according to informed Palestinian sources.(Xinhua)