Blair Sees Chance For Progress on Middle East Conflict

Blair said that critics complained for years that sectarian violence in Northern Ireland was too intractable to be solved but that peace accords have ended most violence there.

He said that on the Israeli-Palestinian problem, people generally agree on the long-term solution -- two independent states -- but the difficulty is in hammering out the details.

"Everybody accepts that there's got to be two states," Blair said. "Now, there are issues like Jerusalem, refugees . . . which are very difficult." But "it's not beyond the wit of man" to devise a territorial solution, he said.

"I believe totally in supporting Israel's security," Blair said. "But the truth is the ultimate security lies in a viable and democratic Palestinian state and in resolving the issues with Israel's neighbors."

Blair said Iran has been a divisive force in the Middle East, backing radical elements of Hamas in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Hezbollah militia in last summer's war with Israel. He has also said Iran's backing of Shiite militias in Iraq has been destabilizing there.

Blair said moderate leaders in the region now "can see that the way that Iran has been manipulating these disputes in the region changes the dynamics of power." He said that beyond the fact that many neighbors in the region have sympathy with the Palestinian cause, they now also believe it is in their strategic interest to counter what he called a "cocktail of elements of extremism and fanaticism."

Despite the Iraq war and the other conflicts, Blair said he saw reasons for optimism in the Middle East.

"You go to these Gulf states and you see the changes they're making in their democracy, the changes in their economy," the prime minister said, citing the United Arab Emirates as an example. "There is a way of moving forward in the Middle East that is about step-by-step greater democracy, opening up their economy and presenting themselves to the world in a modern and moderate light."

As the Middle East "is in the process of decision about its future," Blair said, "we have got to be in there, since we've got the right policy. I mean, what do people choose when they're given the chance? They choose to live in free, democratic societies. So we've got the best case."

Asked if he thought the Democratic Party's victory in last week's U.S. congressional elections signaled growing momentum for a reduction in U.S. troops in Iraq, Blair said he was sure Bush "will see this through."

"I don't think you will see the administration backing away from fulfilling what it said it would do," Blair said. "There should never be any doubt, whether it's in terms of myself or the president. We have said that we will stay as long as the Iraqi government needs us to do so."

Blair also said that a key goal in Iraq was to continue to "plug any gaps in the armed forces and their training," because "the Iraqis want to take greater responsibility, and we have got to empower them to do so."