News Brief10:44 AM

(IsraelNN.com) American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said before leaving for Israel with American President George W. Bush that an agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) before the end of the year is "improbable but it is not impossible." She and the Bush administration previously have been more optimistic that they can bring about an agreement before President Bush leaves office in January.

White House press secretary Dana Perino echoed the lower expectations, telling reporters that "while it is exceedingly difficult, it's not impossible" to reach an accord for a new Arab state within Israel's current borders.

State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said that although President Bush is traveling to Israel to celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary as a modern state, he "suspects that along the way there would be substantive discussions" with Secretary Rice.