Arafat attends European summit in Berlin

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat will visit Berlin this week, during which he will meet with high-ranking officials in an attempt to win support for the Palestinian state's declaration.

Arafat will participate on the sidelines of the European summit that will be convened in Berlin at the end of the current week.

Arafat is trying to discuss means of pushing forward the frozen peace process and the issue of declaring the Palestinian state on May 4.

A Palestinian source said today that Palestine has the right to declare the state at any time, but he added that there is a Palestinian retreat following the position taken by the US Congress, which opposed the state's unilateral declaration.