Blair sees potential for Middle East deal in 2008
Quartet Representative Tony Blair said he believed a peace deal could be clinched between the Israelis and the Palestinians before the end of 2008.
"Sure, it is absolutely possible to have a peace deal by the end of the year if people want to make it happen," Tony Blair said after a week of meeting in the region.
"Given the determination there is to succeed and given the desire on the part of the American leadership, the Israeli leadership, the Palestinian leadership to see it happen, I think people could be surprised this year.”
Speaking in interviews after his meetings, Mr Blair said: "I'm not being daft about it and saying it's definitely going to happen, but I think people haven't yet caught up with the fact that that determination is very real.
"You've got to be careful of saying this is the last chance for it. But it's hard for me to see how you're going to get a peace agreement done if the present initiative fails because if it fails things will move backwards again.
"If we lose the momentum that's been built up after the Annapolis conference and then the Paris conference where we got big international support for the Palestinians, if all of that is then squandered and drains away then I think you will find a very difficult situation indeed, so there is no alternative but to push forward and to do so with determination.
"So far I remain cautiously optimistic that something can be done and I remain absolutely of the view that it has to be done."