Rice’s meetings aimed at allaying Mideast allies

JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice held midnight talks with Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah on Monday on the first leg of a five-day swing through the Middle East to rally Arab allies against the growing momentum of militant movements in the region.

The Bush administration is trying to line up support among an informal new bloc – including the six Persian Gulf states, Egypt and Jordan – to help stabilize the region after the 33-day war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel.

America’s top diplomat described that conflict as a clarifying moment in defining the political forces in the world’s most volatile region. Many analysts believe the sixth Middle East war at least temporarily boosted the standing of Hezbollah as well as its patron Iran and allies such as the radical Palestinian group Hamas.

Rice is hoping to explore ways of reviving the moribund peace process between Israel and the Palestinians as well as bolster support for the fragile governments in Iraq and Lebanon. U.S. officials privately concede that their expectations for any major movement are low.

To emphasize the growing gap between moderates and militants, Rice may hold talks on Friday with the foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany regarding what actions to take against Tehran for failing to comply with a U.N. resolution to stop uranium enrichment.

Rice held a conference call with her counterparts over the weekend to discuss Iran, which missed a formal Aug. 31 deadline. A second, informal deadline passes this week.