Veteran Israeli statesman Shimon Peres announced tonight he was throwing his support behind Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in March elections and ending his own political activity in the Labour Party.
Mr Peres's widely expected move, following his defeat in a Labour leadership ballot on November 9th, was a vote of confidence by the Nobel peace laureate in Mr Sharon's oft-repeated pledge to make "painful concessions" for peace with the Palestinians.
"I ask myself what is the main issue facing Israel in coming years," Mr Peres (82) told a news conference. "I have no doubt this is the inevitable intersection of peace and the diplomatic process."
Calling Mr Sharon the most suitable person for the job of peacemaking, Mr Peres said: "I have therefore decided to support his candidacy and cooperate with him in achieving these objectives."
Israeli media reports said Mr Sharon would offer Mr Peres the job of peace envoy if the prime minister's new Kadima party won the election.
"My activities in the (Labour) party have come to an end," Mr Peres said, stopping short of formally announcing his resignation from the movement. He did not say whether he would be joining Kadima.
As Labour leader and Israel's vice premier, Mr Peres helped Mr Sharon complete a unilateral pullout of troops and Jewish settlers in Gaza last September despite protests in Mr Sharon's former Likud party that such a withdrawal only rewarded Palestinian violence.
Twice prime minister, but never elected to the position, Mr Peres was visibly stunned on the night firebrand trade union chief Amir Peretz scored an upset victory in the race for the Labour leadership.
Mr Sharon, in a gamble that could reshape Israeli politics for years to come, quit the Likud party last week, saying he could not push for peace with the Palestinians while "wasting time" battling far-right rivals in the movement he co-founded in 1973.