World leaders take stock of Bush victory

World leaders take stock of Bush victory

Agencies, Paris/Jakarta

World leaders took stock on Thursday of what four more years of George W. Bush in the White House will bring, with many hoping the president will vigorously pursue the war on terror and boost the Middle East peace process.

The Indonesian government congratulated on Thursday Bush over his reelection and expected to build a stronger relationship with the world's only superpower country.

"The government of Indonesia congratulates President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard B. Cheney on their re-election and wish them success in their second term in dealing with the various challenges facing both the United States and the world," the Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

European leaders, gathering in Brussels, put on a brave face but the U.S. leader's victory leaves Europe as divided as ever over the Iraq war and hoping that the second Bush term will prove less rocky than the first.

French President Jacques Chirac, who spearheaded the anti-war bloc and whose personal relations with Bush remain chilly, said he hoped France and the United States could seize the "opportunity to reinforce the Franco-American friendship."

But in a sign of the continuing strains notably over Iraq, it emerged on Thursday that Chirac will not attend a lunch with Iraqi interim prime minister Iyad Allawi in Brussels on Friday, to be attended by all his EU counterparts.

Britain's Tony Blair, Bush's chief European ally in Iraq, underlined in congratulating Bush that it was "urgent" to renew frayed transatlantic ties.

"Europe and America must build anew their alliance. All of us in positions of leadership -- not just President Bush -- have a responsibility to rise to this challenge," he said.

The British leader also said he plans to pressure Washington over the Middle East, calling peace in that region "the single most pressing political challenge in our world."

Several leaders including Blair and Russian President Vladimir Putin said Bush's win represented a victory in the U.S.-led war on terror.

"We must be relentless in our war against terrorism, and in resolving the conditions and causes on which the terrorists prey," Blair said.

In the Arab world, there was widespread dismay that four more years of Bush as leader of the world's only remaining superpower could fuel wider chaos and bloodshed in the Middle East, while some leaders said Bush should use his new mandate to help create a Palestinian state.

The Palestinian leadership pledged to work with the new U.S. administration.

Yasser Arafat, who is gravely ill in a hospital near Paris, welcomed Bush's victory and voiced the hope that his new mandate would give momentum to the Middle East peace process, according to aides.

Israel however glowed with satisfaction, confident of four more years of support from its best-ever friend in the White House.

Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said: "He has led the war against terrorism, especially Palestinian terrorism, and he has refused any contacts with Arafat.

"All this reflects the fact that he is the most friendly president towards Israel that we have ever had."

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak hoped Bush would exert more effort to bring about "a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East by establishing a Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel."

He hoped Bush would continue fighting terrorism by "dealing actively with its root causes".

Arab League secretary general Amr Mussa also said he hoped the administration would show the "concern needed to achieve President Bush's vision for the creation of an active and sustainable Palestinian state in 2005."

In Africa, South African President Thabo Mbeki said he was looking forward to continue working with Bush to fight poverty and underdevelopment in the world's poorest continent.