Blair joins Canada and refuses to demand that Arafat quits

Tony Blair became the second G8 leader to voice thinly veiled misgivings over George Bush's stark demand that the Palestinians replace Yasser Arafat as their leader as a precondition for creation of a Palestinian state.

After a meeting on the margins of the G8 summit at a resort in the Canadian Rockies, the Prime Minister underlined the importance of the Palestinians electing a leader who could be trusted, as a precondition for peace.

But, he declared, the United States and its allies should not be telling the Palestinians how to run their elections ­ the complaint levelled at the US President by senior Palestinian officials after the unveiling of Mr Bush's "vision of peace", widely interpreted as heavily tilted in the direction of Israel.

Mr Blair said the two allies would make clear to the Palestinians there were "certain clear preconditions" if the peace process was ever to be made to work. "One, we've got to have leadership we can negotiate with that is serious about peace and ... totally rejects terrorism." The Prime Minister thus joined the Canadian leader, Jean Chretien, who, on Mr Bush's arrival here on Tuesday, pointedly refused to endorse the call for Mr Arafat's replacement.

After supporting the President's insistence on democratic elections of a new Palestinian leadership and parliament ­ to be held in January ­ the Canadian Prime Minister said he had "no specific point of view" on whether Mr Arafat should go.

Mr Blair said he had held 30 different meetings with the PLO leader. "We've got a situation where we have not been able to make progress and there has been an attitude toward terrorists that is inconsistent with the notion of Israeli security."

In a move against international terrorism, the G8 leaders agreed to strengthen security surrounding commercial transport. They planned tighter security at airline check-in, more heavily protected doors into cockpits and increased scrutiny of container and sea cargo, especially of hazardous materials.

Italy announced agreement on a $20bn, 10-year programme to speed the destruction of nuclear materials in Russia. Half the cost will be borne by the US, the rest by the other G8 countries.