Leaders of the Group of Eight nations should produce a new initiative next week on the Middle East peace process, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Friday. "I hope but I can't yet be sure that there will be a specific initiative on the Israeli-Palestinian issue," Blair, who will chair the G8 summit, told a news conference, according to Reuters. "I can't make any commitments or promises on it but ... I've set aside time within the summit now to do this because there have been developments over the past few days that lead me to believe we may be able to make some progress," Blair said. The G8 leaders hold their annual meeting in the Gleneagles hotel in Scotland from next Wednesday to Friday, ahead of a planned withdrawal next month of Israeli soldiers and settlers from Gaza, home to 1.3 million Palestinians. The United States, traditionally the main Middle East peace broker, sees the withdrawal as a move that could help revive talks on a long stalled "road map" for peace and Palestinian statehood, following a truce agreed by Israel and the Palestinians in February. Blair said there was a new but fragile "atmosphere of hope". His officials would not disclose any details, saying they were still up for negotiation.
