TONY BLAIR has won the agreement of President Bush for another push to revive the Middle East peace process, despite widespread dismay at America’s reluctance to follow through past initiatives.

The Prime Minister, who returns from holiday this week, plans to make the quest for a viable Palestinian state a priority for his remaining period in office and is ready to act as an international progress chaser if talks can be resumed.

Labour sources say that Mr Blair has been frustrated by the failure of President Bush to act on commitments to implement the ‘road map’ for the Middle East peace process.

A senior government source told The Times that Mr Blair had, however, secured a new agreement from President Bush during his visit to Washington last month to support a fresh attempt to revive peace talks.

Mr Blair plans to visit Israel and territory under Palestinian control, either the West Bank or Gaza, to consult leaders on a way forward.

His visit will be watched closely for how he deals with leaders of Hamas, the armed Islamic resistance that won control of the Palestinian parliament in January.

British politicians have always refused to talk to Hamas unless it recognises the state of Israel and renounces violence, but last year the Government admitted it had authorised British diplomats to begin low-level talks with Hamas.

At his Downing Street press conference at the beginning of this month Mr Blair drew a parallel between the Middle East peace process and that in Northern Ireland, saying he achieved progress there by “close management” and persuading different sides to change position step by step.

A Downing Street spokesman said yesterday that Mr Blair’s position on not speaking to Hamas unless it recognised Israel and renounced violence remained unchanged.

The spokesman declined to comment on a report in The Observer that Ehud Olmert, Israel’s Prime Minister, had told Lord Levy, Mr Blair’s Middle East envoy, that the time was not right for him to visit and that it was too soon after the war in Lebanon for Israel to talk with the Palestinians.

Times Recommends

• Plan for 9/11 trial in New York divides the city
• Beijing gets the jitters as Obama flies in
• Potshot Palin settles scores