Arafat summit blow for US

The US hopes the summit will still focus on peace

By Stephen Sackur BBC Washington correspondent

Yasser Arafat's decision not to travel to Beirut for the Arab League summit represents a setback for the Bush administration.

Senior US officials had asked the Israeli Government to allow the Palestinian leader to travel from Ramallah to Lebanon, but Prime Minister Ariel Sharon proved unwilling to bow to American pressure.

Some fear Arafat's absence will harden the tone of talks

The "will he, won't he" question about Mr Arafat's journey to Beirut prompted days of high level US diplomatic intervention.

With the final answer, negative questions are now being asked about the wisdom of the Bush team strategy.

Before news of Mr Arafat's non-appearance in Beirut was made official, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the president hopes the Beirut meeting will still focus on ways to make peace.

Change of tack

Earlier, American suggestions that the absence of Mr Arafat would undermine meaningful discussions of the Saudi peace plan are no longer being emphasised.

Instead, Mr Fleischer said no matter who goes, the ideas that were advanced by Crown Prince Abdullah can be very helpful in creating a consensus among Arab nations.

The Bush team was unable to persuade Israel

Behind the scenes, though, US officials fear the absence of Mr Arafat and the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, from Beirut will harden the tone coming from the summit.

At the same time the Arafat question has illustrated the limited ability of the Bush administration to impose its will on Mr Sharon.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell twice called the Israeli prime minister in an effort to persuade him to grant Mr Arafat safe passage.

It did not work, and with Vice President Dick Cheney still refusing to meet the Palestinian leader face-to-face, it left critics accusing the Bush team of sending mixed and confusing signals in its approach to Mr Arafat.