"The Americans are determined to push the parties into reaching an arrangement during President Bush's current term," Abbas was quoted as telling Israel's Maariv daily in published extracts of the interview.

"I heard this in person from the president himself and from Secretary of State (Condoleezza) Rice. They want to reach an arrangement between Israel and the Palestinians in the coming year," he added.

Bush leaves office in January 2009 after two terms in the White House.

"We have to reach the final formula, the end game, and then think about the implementation and set a timetable for the implementation on the ground," said Abbas, when asked about his plan for a final-status arrangement.

"First we have to resolve the problems and arrive at an outline for the final agreement," he added, listing his principles of this agreement.

"A Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with east Jerusalem as its capital and a solution to all the problems on the agenda, including the refugee problem," he said.

"Afterwards we have to think about how to implement the agreement... The timetable may be long, but what is important is for the Palestinians to know the final result, the end game, from the outset."

Speaking about the sensitive Palestinian refugee question, Abbas called for a "just and agreed-upon solution" which he said would need to be "creative" but without going into details.

On whether he intends to run in the next presidential election he was non-committal. "Perhaps three and a half years is enough," he told Maariv.

The paper claimed Abbas voiced support for Marwan Barghuti, the most famous Palestinian prisoner jailed by Israel, if and when he runs for president.

On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert declared "we have started very seriously" to talk to Abbas "on a peace process and questions which can allow a Palestinian state to be established."