Blair: Bush Can Lead Mideast Talks
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}British Prime Minister Tony Blair (search) said Sunday that he expected U.S. President George W. Bush (search) to lead final status negotiations on the creation of a Palestinian state after negotiations to make such a state viable.
Blair said a London conference on strengthening and reforming the Palestinian administration, its security forces and financial situation would take place March 1-2. He said talks would be used to prepare Palestinians for the possibility of a proper state.
"If we can provide the help for the Palestinians to develop that basic infrastructure of a viable state, then (Bush) is prepared to do the negotiations that make it viable in terms of its territory too," Blair told British Broadcasting Corp. TV.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"If we can get that conference successfully moving ahead and then the Israelis disengage from part of the occupied territories, then I believe that President Bush will be willing in those circumstances to get back into the roadmap and get back into the conferences that can lead to a proper final status resolution."