As peace talks are about to begin at Camp David, Md., between Israeli and Palestinian leaders, the world watches to see whether an agreement can be reached between the two countries. DePaul University has Middle East experts available to provide political analysis as the talks develop and to comment on what the outcome of the talks may be.

      M. Cherif Bassiouni, professor of law, 312/362-8332 . Prof. Bassiouni is an internationally recognized authority on Middle East affairs, terrorism and international law. He has served as an advisor to the U.S. government and the United Nations on the Middle East - most notably during the Iran hostage crisis and Camp David Accords.

      Bassiouni's take on the talks: "I see a positive outcome from these meetings. I'm very optimistic because both sides have a desire to reach an agreement."

      Gregory C. Kozlowski, professor of history, 773/325-1567. Prof. Kozlowski specializes in the history of the Persian Gulf region. He is an authority on cultural tensions and the effect of imperialism on the Muslim world, including Iran, Pakistan, India, Egypt and Turkey.

      Kozlowski's take on the talks: "The question is how much really are the Israelis going to be willing to concede. It doesn't sound like they are willing to concede very much. They are not willing to talk about Jerusalem. They are not willing to talk about letting Palestinian refugees back into this new Palestine. So, it seems like once again it's going to be the Palestinians that have to concede, and I don't think the Palestinian leadership can really do much more of that. I think it's going to be a very difficult process. But as the president says, 'if it were easy it would have been done before now.'"