US, Europe firm on shunning Hamas
Secretary of State Rice says neither Quartet nor Washington will deal with Hamas unless it recognizes Israel's right to exist, renounces terrorism. Meanwhile, Former Secretary of State Powell says in radio interview, 'I think you'd have to find some way to talk to Hamas'
The former British leader was attending his first high-level meeting of the international diplomatic Quartet on the Middle East amid hopes he can jump-start the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
Blair met with Quartet leaders to discuss his mandate, following a whirlwind tour of European capitals this week.
Many believe Blair's role is too limited in focusing only on the Palestinians, and then only on one part of the fractured community split between moderates in the West Bank and the hard-line Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.
Ahead of the meeting, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, whose country holds the rotating European Union presidency, rejected any dealings with Hamas, even as some questioned if that could compromise Blair's work.
"Hamas, I think, knows what is expected for international respectability," Rice told a news conference in Lisbon with Amado shortly before the Quartet principals met with Blair.
She said neither the Quartet - the US, the EU, the United Nations and Russia - nor Washington would deal with Hamas unless it recognizes Israel's right to exist and renounces terrorism, ruling out its participation in an upcoming peace meeting called by President Bush.
Speaking for the EU, Amado agreed.
"I see no conditions at the moment to engage (in) new relations with Hamas without a new position from them," he said.
Blair's first trip to the region as envoy is believed imminent. On Thursday, Israeli President Shimon Peres announced he was meeting with Blair on Tuesday.
The Quartet meeting was the first at the group's top level since Hamas ousted Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' more moderate Fatah faction from the Gaza Strip.
The power grab has split the Palestinian leadership and placed yet another obstacle in the way of a peace deal. But it also prompted Israel and others to seek ways to shore up the beleaguered Abbas, whose government now rules only in the West Bank.
Powell: Hamas has to be engaged
On Thursday, a top PLO body gave Abbas preliminary approval for new presidential and legislative elections. It is a high-stakes gamble meant to sideline Hamas, but also is bound to set off new confrontations with the Islamic militants and cement the West Bank-Gaza divide.
Rice said she sensed a "kind of momentum" building in Middle East peace efforts, including Blair's appointment as Quartet envoy and Bush's call for a meeting this fall involving Israel, the Palestinians and neighboring Arab states.
On her way to Portugal, she said Blair could breathe new life into the long-stalled talks. At the same time, she defended the decision to limit Blair's mandate to helping Palestinians develop their infrastructure and economy.
She said his role would complement US-led diplomatic efforts, and that there was plenty of work for everyone.
"This is a very skilled, respected, historic figure in many ways in the world, who is absolutely dedicated to democracy, to building a better Middle East," Rice told reporters aboard her plane.
Blair is charged with helping Abbas' government build national and political institutions to uphold the rule of law and improve the shattered Palestinian economy. But he has not been given a role as a mediator or the authority to speak with Hamas on the Quartet's behalf.
Those constraints have led to concerns that Blair may not be able to accomplish anything more than modest gains in the West Bank.
Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, no stranger to Middle East peace efforts, said Wednesday that he saw no solution to the conflict other than engaging with Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US and EU.
"I think you'd have to find some way to talk to Hamas," Powell said in an interview with National Public Radio. "As unpleasant a group they may be, and as distasteful as I find some of their positions, I think that through the Middle East Quartet ... or through some means, Hamas has to be engaged."
Rice said the Quartet is expected to endorse Bush's plan for an international meeting. She said she also would try to round up support for it among Arab states when she visits the Middle East with Defense Secretary Robert Gates at the end of the month.
