US President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair have discussed the path forward in Iraq after a historic shift in US policy in the Middle East that could complicate the goal of bringing peace to the region.
As Bush and Blair sat down in the Oval Office today, the White House seized on a UN proposal for an interim Iraqi government as a welcome recommendation. Bush has been criticised this week for not having shed light on what plan he supports for Iraq once sovereignty is transferred on June 30 from a US-led coalition.
The proposal was put together by UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi to dissolve the Iraqi Governing Council and develop a caretaker government until elections can be held early next year.
"The idea of a president, a prime minister, and two vice presidents and a cabinet, none of that causes us any concern. We very much welcome those recommendations," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.
Bush and Blair were to hold a joint news conference at midday followed by lunch. Besides Iraq and the Middle East, they were to discuss Afghanistan and Libya's forsaking of weapons of mass destruction.
"The United States has no closer ally than Great Britain and no greater friend than Prime Minister Blair," said McClellan.
Bush and Blair have been the staunchest allies in the Iraq war, joining forces last year to try to convince the world that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which have not been found, and now struggling to bring stability to the country after weeks of renewed bloodshed.
Both men have suffered politically because of the problems in Iraq. A new poll by the University of Pennsylvania's National Annenberg Election Survey said 57 percent of Americans agree with Bush that U.S. troops should be kept in Iraq until a stable government is established, but 58 percent did not think he has a clear plan for achieving success there.
One topic for Bush and Blair will be Bush's decision on Wednesday to break with past U.S. policy and support Israel's claim to some West Bank settlements.
At the United Nations in New York yesterday, Blair denied Palestinian charges that the shift crippled the "road map" peace plan put forward by major powers in 2002.
The road map crafted by the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations laid out steps toward an independent Palestinian state and a final Middle East resolution by next year.
The Palestinians, like London and Washington, had long viewed the settlements as an obstacle to peace, backed by a line of U.N. Security Council resolutions calling on Israel to abandon them.
Blair denied feeling let down by Bush.
"I don't see the road map as sidelined at all," he said. "I think it's important that we ensure that the initiative that has been taken the past couple of days leads to a real sense of movement and change there in the Middle East."