[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 42 (Monday, October 19, 1998)]
[Pages 2060-2061]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Plenary Session of the Wye River Conference on the Middle 
East at Wye Mills, Maryland

October 15, 1998

    I wish to welcome Prime Minister Netanyahu, Chairman Arafat, and the 
members of the Israeli and Palestinian delegations here. As I said 
earlier today at the White House, there is hard work ahead if we are to 
reach an agreement here and get the peace process moving again. 
Secretary Albright and I and our entire team are ready to do whatever we 
can.
    As the press contingent prepares to leave, let me say that all of us 
are determined to keep our energies focused on the talks themselves. 
Therefore, we have agreed to confine our dealings with the media on this 
subject to periodic briefings to be conducted by spokespersons. We have 
a lot of work to do, a limited amount of time to do it in, but we're 
ready to get to work.

[[Page 2061]]

    Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 5:07 p.m. in the Main Conference Room at 
the Wye River Conference Center. In his remarks, he referred to Prime 
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu of Israel and Chairman Yasser Arafat of the 
Palestinian Authority.