Blair heads to Washington for Middle East talks
Tony Blair is flying to Washington later today for talks with US president George Bush over the escalating crisis in the Middle East.
The prime minister is expected to call on Mr Bush to show more urgency in pressing for an end to hostilities between Hizbullah and Israel, although he is expected to maintain his opposition to calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Mr Blair has been coming under increasing pressure to call for Israel to halt its rocket attacks on Lebanon, in which about 400 people have been killed in the past two weeks.
There are concerns that, despite his public disquiet about the civilian casualties and calls for restraint, the failure to call for an immediate ceasefire is akin to giving Israel the green light.
But Mr Blair told Today before his flight: “Of course anybody with any sense or humanity wants what is happening to stop now, but if it is to stop, it has to stop on both sides. That is not going to happen unless there is a plan to make it stop.”
A YouGov poll for the Daily Telegraph yesterday found 63 per cent of people thought Israel had the right to defend itself, but its attacks in Lebanon and Gaza were “inappropriate and disproportionate”.
The results support an ICM poll for the Guardian on Tuesday, which revealed that just 22 per cent of voters believed Israel had acted proportionately to the kidnapping of two of its soldiers during an invasion by Hizbullah, which started the conflict.
Members of the cabinet, opposition and Labour MPs are also reportedly concerned about Mr Blair’s failure to take a tougher line with the Jewish state – a failure that has only exacerbated fears that yet again, Britain is following Washington’s lead too closely.
Yesterday’s YouGov survey found 64 per cent of people believed the prime minister “gives the impression of siding with the Americans, whatever they say”. The ICM poll came up with similar results, with 63 per cent saying Mr Blair was too close to Mr Bush.
These concerns have been compounded by reports that the US used Prestwick airport in Glasgow to refuel its planes carrying bombs to Israel, although foreign secretary Margaret Beckett has already made clear she is “not happy” with the situation.
Mr Blair is likely to raise this issue in today’s meeting, which was planned before the Middle East crisis exploded but will no doubt be dominated by questions of how to resolve it, including plans for an international stabilisation force in the region.
Iraq is also likely to be on the agenda – both the US and UK premiers have met with Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki recently.
