Bush visits Middle East

IN his first personal foray into Middle East peace talks, US president George W Bush pledged yesterday to “put in as much time as necessary” to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians and help them live side by side.

Bush, on the eve of two days of talks with leaders in the region, said he knew it would not be an easy task to end years of hostility in the region: “I think we’ll make some progress. I know we’re making progress.”

After staying aloof from the Middle East for 18 months as violence between the two sides escalated, Bush became the first president specifically to endorse a Palestinian state. However, he said it could come only with a more democratic Palestinian system and without Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, the long-time symbol of the Palestinian movement.