Germany's Schroeder praises Mubarak's peace role

CAIRO (Reuters) -- German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Saturday praised Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's role as a broker in Middle East peace.

"It can be said without exaggeration that you are certainly the most important broker for peace in the Middle East," he told reporters after talks with Mubarak on violence between Palestinians and Israeli troops.

"You succeeded in Sharm el-Sheikh and in Cairo so that now the negotiations can at least continue," Schroeder said, referring to separate summits held two weeks ago to try to end the violence.

Mubarak hosted Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian President Yasser Arafat at a peace conference called by U.S. President Bill Clinton at Sharm el-Sheikh.

Egypt was instrumental in leading an Arab summit several days later which strongly criticized Israel for use of force against Palestinians, while leaving the door open to further peace efforts.

Schroeder arrived in Cairo on Saturday on a three-day visit, the first by a German chancellor since 1995, during a regional tour that will also take him to Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Israel and the Palestinian territories, German officials said.

The trip was planned long before the last month's clashes, which have killed at least 139 people, all but eight of them Arabs, they said.

Barak told a German magazine on Wednesday he hoped Schroeder would put pressure on Arafat to stop the violence during an expected meeting with the Palestinian leader.

German government sources said the trip had been closely coordinated with the United States and France, which holds the rotating European Union presidency.

Germany has long been an ally of Israel, while the Palestinians have called for a greater European role in peace efforts.

Schroeder was due to meet the Secretary-General of the Cairo-based Arab League Esmat Abdel-Meguid on Sunday. He will also hold talks with Egyptian Prime Minister Atef Obeid on trade relations.

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