At the U.S-sponsored Middle East peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland, two weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas agreed to resume negotiations toward creating a Palestinian state by the end of 2008.
The talks are being headed by Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and former Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei.
The Israeli government has said that Wednesday's talks are to focus mainly on procedural issues.
Palestinian officials are expected to press Israel to freeze the construction of homes in East Jerusalem, which it annexed during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.
Israel's construction ministry currently has plans to build 307 houses in Jabal Abu Ghneim, in East Jerusalem. The roadmap settlement plan proposed by international mediators in the Middle East peace process requires Israel to halt the construction of settlements in occupied Palestinian territories.
However, Tel Aviv insists the requirement does not extend to East Jerusalem - touted as the capital of any future Palestinian state. The Israelis are against the separation of Jerusalem, but have agreed to hold talks on the city's status with the Palestinians.
