Diplomatic 'Quartet' on Middle East to meet tomorrow in New York - UN spokesperson

The diplomatic "Quartet" on the Middle East peace process - the United Nations, United States, Russian Federation and European Union - will meet at its senior level tomorrow in New York, a UN spokesperson announced today.

Hua Jiang told reporters in New York that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan would attend the meeting, along with US Secretary of State Colin Powell, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and the European Union Commissioner dealing with foreign policy, Javier Solana.

Meeting at Manhattan's Waldorf Astoria Hotel, the four will hold "a discussion of recent developments in the Middle East," she said.

In the early evening, the Secretary-General will host a meeting at his residence of the Quartet members along with the Egyptian and Jordanian Foreign Ministers and the Saudi Permanent Representative to the UN, according to Ms. Jiang. That meeting will be followed by a dinner.

Meanwhile today, the Secretary-General discussed the upcoming Quartet meeting with Jordanian Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher. According to a readout put out by the Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General, the two discussed “some ideas that the Arab side may bring to tomorrow’s meeting.” In addition, they talked about “the prospects for progress after the Quartet meeting.”