Blair flying out again to build anti-terror coalition

British Prime Minister Tony Blair was today embarking on a new round of shuttle diplomacy to cement support for the coalition against terrorism as MPs returned to Westminster to debate the crisis.

Mr Blair was making an emergency statement in the Commons - recalled for a second time since the September 11 terror attacks - before leaving for Russia for talks with President Vladimir Putin.

The rest of the trip is regarded as acutely sensitive by officials and Downing Street has refused to disclose any other destinations on Mr Blair’s itinerary.

His mission coincides with a visit to the Middle East by US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to reassure key allies in the region ahead of expected military action against Afghanistan.

Mr Blair travels to Russia as Mr Putin has emerged as a key player in the crisis, voicing unexpectedly strong support for US-led military strikes against Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida terrorist network and their Afghanistan hosts.

The Russian leader is also seen as an influential figure in the former Soviet states bordering Afghanistan, such as Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, which could provide a launch pad for military action.

At landmark talks yesterday at Nato headquarters in Brussels, Mr Putin spoke of the need for ‘‘closer ties’’ between Russia and the alliance in the wake of events in America as part of a new security structure evolving across Europe.

The British Prime Minister yesterday briefed Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith and Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy separately in Downing Street ahead of today’s one-day emergency re-call of parliament.

Mr Duncan Smith said afterwards that he expected Mr Blair would have something ‘‘very interesting’’ to tell MPs while Mr Kennedy called on the Prime Minister to publish his evidence linking bin Laden to the atrocities in the US.

Last night Mr Rumsfeld held talks in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh at the start of a diplomatic tour that will take him to Oman - where more than 20,000 British Armed Forces personnel are currently on exercises - Egypt and Uzbekistan.

President George Bush laid the ground for his trip on Tuesday when he signalled a shift in US policy, speaking for the first time about the prospect of a ‘‘Palestinian state’’.

The Saudis, like the Egyptians, are highly nervous at the prospect of military action against Afghanistan - a fellow Muslim state - and have shown deep reluctance to allow the US to use the giant Prince Sultan airbase in any operations it mounts.

Following talks with King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah, Mr Rumsfeld said they had expressed concern about the possible fall-out of attacks on Afghanistan.

‘‘We had a very substantive and interesting and thoughtful discussion about the nature of the problem and the complexities of the problem, and the importance of dealing with it in a way that recognises secondary effects that could occur,’’ he said.

Earlier Mr Rumsfeld indicated that his trip would focus on intelligence gathering about the situation in Afghanistan.

‘‘I honestly believe it will be a scrap of information that will turn the tide,’’ he said.

Asked whether he knew bin Laden’s whereabouts, he replied: ‘‘I have a little bit of a handle, but I don’t have coordinates.’’