Bush to get West Bank pitch from Israeli PM

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (2nd L) and his wife Aliza (front) arrive in Washington. Picture / Reuters

WASHINGTON - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert arrived in Washington, offering President George W. Bush an overview of his plan for the West Bank.

With Olmert's proposal still in its infancy, major decisions are unlikely during the four-day visit.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has also slipped down the United States agenda as Bush confronts mounting unpopularity at home, constant challenges in Iraq and the prospect of a nuclear Iran.

Olmert, a senior Israeli official said, would present "convergence ideas" to Bush but along with the US leader publicly restate a commitment to the peace "road map" championed by the President.

Under the West Bank plan, Olmert intends in the absence of a Palestinian peace partner to remove dozens of isolated Israeli settlements in the occupied territory, bolster major enclaves Israel says it intends to keep forever and set a border by 2010.

Those go-it-alone steps, condemned by the Palestinians, could spell the end of the road map, which charts reciprocal "confidence-building" moves and negotiations culminating in the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel.

- REUTERS