Prime Minister Ehud Olmert arrived in Washington DC for a four-day visit Tuesday morning, during which he is scheduled to meet with US President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babajan arrived in Washington at approximately the same time, although the two are not formally scheduled to meet with each other during their stay. Turkey is brokering the renewed talks between Israel and Syria after an eight-year hiatus. Prime Minister Olmert is scheduled to return to Israel on Friday.