President George Bush has endorsed a fresh initiative by British prime minister Tony Blair to revive peace talks between Israel and Palestine as part of an effort to stabilise Iraq, writes Denis Stauntonin Washington
Mr Bush stopped short of echoing Mr Blair and the bipartisan Iraq Study Group by making a direct link between the future of Iraq and the Middle East peace process. The president said, however, that violence in Iraq was part of a broader struggle between moderates and extremists throughout the Middle East.
"Prime Minister Blair and I understand that we have a responsibility to lead and to support moderates and reformers who work for change across the broader Middle East.
"We also recognise that meeting this responsibility requires action. We will take concerted efforts to advance the cause of peace in the Middle East. Prime Minister Blair informed me that he will be heading to the Middle East soon to talk to both the Israelis and the Palestinians. And I support that mission," Mr Bush said.
The president was speaking at a joint press conference with Mr Blair after the two men met at the White House to discuss the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group for a new policy in the region. The bipartisan group, chaired by former secretary of state James Baker and former congressman Lee Hamilton, called this week for direct talks on Iraq's future with Syria and Iran and a renewed diplomatic effort to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Mr Bush appeared yesterday to reject another of the report's key recommendations, a call for all 15 US combat brigades to be withdrawn from Iraq by early 2008.
"I've always said we'd like our troops out as fast as possible. I think that's an important goal. On the other hand, our commanders will be making recommendations based upon whether or not we're achieving our stated objective," he said. Mr Bush is expected to make a major speech later this month, outlining a new strategy for Iraq that will draw on the Iraq Study Group report and on internal policy reviews by the Pentagon and the state department. The president repeated his opposition to direct talks with Iran before Tehran suspends its programme of uranium enrichment.
He left the door open, however, to engaging with Iran and Syria within an international support group for Iraq, suggesting that such a group could be based on the UN-sponsored International Compact with Iraq. Iran and Syria have attended meetings of the compact, which focuses on economic development in Iraq.
"The idea of having an international group is an interesting idea. We've already got the compact, and I think the Baker-Hamilton report suggests that we broaden the compact beyond just economic measures," Mr Bush said.
Mr Blair said that a renewed effort to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was essential if the West was to gain confidence as an even-handed partner throughout the Middle East.
"I think what is interesting from what you have from this today is an acceptance and, indeed, a clear belief that you look at these issues together. And there is a kind of whole vision about how we need to proceed that links what happens inside Iraq with what happens outside Iraq," he said.
Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert yesterday rejected the Iraq Study Group's assertion that Israel must talk to Syria and solve its conflict with the Palestinians to help the Bush administration to stabilise Iraq.
"The attempt to create a linkage between the Iraqi issue and the Middle East issue - we have a different view. To the best of my knowledge, President Bush, throughout the recent years, also had a different view on this," he said.
Mr Baker and Mr Hamilton yesterday defended their report before the senate armed services committee as some senators expressed scepticism about its military recommendations and the proposal for direct talks with Iran and Syria.