PM urges "difficult and brave steps" to Middle East peace

8 May 2008

Gordon Brown has marked the 60th anniversary of the creation of Israel, calling it one of the "greatest achievements" of the 20th Century.

Speaking at Finchley Synagogue last night, the PM said that Israel has faced "immense threats" since its creation. He called for a future where the "children of Abraham" would live together in peace as part of the same extended family.

• Read the full speech

The British Government are ready to support the peace process with finance for an economic roadmap to reduce unemployment, build new industries, and guarantee a viable economic future for the Palestinian people, he added.

Mr Brown said:

"Let us all stand ready to help Israel find a truly secure place in a peaceful Middle East. Let us celebrate a nation that can triumph over attempts at isolation, threats of war, and threats of terrorism and emerge even stronger, tending its young caring for its sick, cherishing its old.

"Let us celebrate a country that even people, thousands of miles away in the remotest corners of the world, think of as home. And it is this that gives me faith in the future."

• Finchley United Synagogue (new window)
• Middle east peace process - FCO pages (new window)

Image copyright: Reuters