11.   The Taliban rulers say a cease-fire should precede talks.

12.   A photo session with journalists will precede informal talks between the two, informed sources said.

13.   Those talks will be preceded in Christchurch by a meeting between Japanese vice trade minister Yoshihiro Sakamoto and his US counterpart, Ira Shapiro, over the weekend.

14.   Their talks were preceded by discussions at the technical level early on Monday and Tuesday.

15.   To Mayhew, elections must precede multi-party talks.

16.   The government, however, wants a ceasefire to precede talks, while the rebels want talks to precede a ceasefire, Annan said.

17.   The meeting with Chirac precedes renewed talks Sunday with Israel at the Erez crossing point on the Gaza Strip.