WASHINGTON, Aug 9: A delegation of senior Palestinian ministers held talks with top US officials on Thursday, amid a US atmosphere filled with divergent opinions on Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat and the creation of a Palestinian state.

The two days of meetings reprsent the highest level discussions since June 24, when US President George W. Bush said the creation of a Palestinian state depended on major political and security reforms within the Palestinian Authority, throwing Arafat’s leadership into question.

“We all know the alternative to Arafat is chaos,” said Erekat soon after arriving in Washington on Wednesday, but nevertheless asked Washington to set a schedule for Palestinian statehood.

The delegation, which includes Interior Minister Abdel-Razzaq al-Yahya and Economy Minister Maher al-Masri, also underlined the “humanitarian disaster” facing the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The State Department has said that the primary aim of the talks is to look at possible Palestinian security reforms to end suicide bombings that have shattered the Authority’s credibility with Washington.

The visit has also been seen by analysts as an attempt to coax the United States back to a more moderate stance from the harder line Bush has taken in recent months.—AFP