Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, while meeting Fatah-chief and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas Monday, told him he hoped that talks toward establishing a Palestinian state could take place in the near future.

"I came here in order to discuss with you the fundamental issues outstanding between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, hoping that this will lead us soon into negotiations about the creation of a Palestinian state," Olmert said.

The meeting took place in PA-controlled Jericho.