Sarah Palin threatens to overshadow George Bush at the United Nations in New York today with more meetings with key world leaders than the departing US President.

The Republican vice-presidential nominee, who has never met a world leader and got her US passport only last year, was due to have a crash course in foreign policy with appointments with at least seven presidents and prime ministers plus Henry Kissinger and the rock star activist Bono. The schedule of the Alaska Governor, along with remarks that she released on Iran, offers pointers to probable US foreign policy if the Republicans retake the White House.

Her diary is full of appointments with key US allies, suggesting that a McCain-Palin Administration will take a hawkish stance towards Russia, continue to work closely with Pakistan and India, and support strongly the leaders of Iraq, Afghanistan and Colombia.

In a gesture towards a revanchist Russia, Mrs Palin is due to meet Mikheil Saakashvili, the President of Georgia, and Victor Yushchenko, the President of Ukraine. She plans to hold talks with President Talabani of Iraq, President Karzai of Afghanistan and President Uribe of Colombia – all key US allies.

She will also meet Asif Ali Zardari, the new Pakistani President, Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minister, and Bono, the U2 frontman, whose ONE campaign has won him praise from John McCain.

Mrs Palin was due to start her whirlwind round of diplomacy last night. She is also considering attending a meeting of the Iraq coalition to be chaired by Mr Bush at the UN headquarters this evening.

Britain has not asked or been asked to have any bilateral meeting with Mrs Palin, but will be represented at today’s meeting of the Iraq coalition.

After roars from Democrats, Mrs Palin was forced to abandon the most dramatic part of her foray into international diplomacy – a plan to speak at an antiIran rally organised by Jewish groups outside the UN yesterday.

First, Hillary Clinton pulled out of the protest so as not to appear to be endorsing Mrs Palin. Then Barack Obama’s campaign complained that it had not been invited.

Stung by criticism that they were turning the protest into an election event, Mrs Palin was “disinvited”. Mrs Palin released to the New York Sun yesterday the speech that she would have made at the antiIran protest, saying that President Ahmadinejad “must be stopped”.

“Senator Clinton understands the nature of this threat and what we must do to confront it. This is an issue that should unite all Americans,” she planned to say. “Iran should not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. Period. And in a single voice, we must be loud enough for the whole world to hear: Stop Iran!”

Mrs Palin proposed a variety of nonmilitary means of pressing Iran to stop its nuclear programme, including “truly tough” UN sanctions, starting with restrictions on Iran’s refined petroleum products.

Mr Bush’s advance schedule looks light in comparison with Mrs Palin’s. He will deliver a farewell address to the UN General Assembly, stressing multilateral diplomacy in an attempt to shed his Iraq-war image as a unilateralist cowboy.

Apart from a call on Ban Ki Moon, the UN Secretary-General, his only official sit-down with a world leader is a meeting with Mr Zardari. He will then attend a meeting on food security before heading to Florida for a Republican party event in a private home.

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