Jerusalem: Ahead of a visit to the Middle East, US President George W Bush expressed some optimism that an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement would be struck before his term ends while holding out little hope for a major breakthrough when he arrives in Israel today.

His Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, yesterday said reaching such a deal within the next eight months "might be improbable but it s not impossible."

Bush will attend ceremonies in Jerusalem marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state. He will also go to Saudi Arabia where he promises to press King Abdullah to increase oil production to ease soaring costs on consumers. Bush made a similar plea in January but it was ignored.

As Bush prepared to leave Washington, Senate Democrats introduced a resolution that would block USD 1.4 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia unless Riyadh agrees to increase its oil production by 1 million barrels per day.

The Democrats said they introduced the measure to coincide with Bush s trip to send a message to Saudi Arabia that it should pump more oil to reduce the cost of gas for Americans.

"We are saying to the Saudis, if you aren't helping us, why should we be helping you?" said Sen Charles Schumer, a Democrat.

The move might be largely symbolic. Congress usually has 30 days to block international arms deals once notified by the administration, and all of the sales in question were announced long ago. Still, Schumer said that Congress still has the right to intervene because the weapons have not been delivered.

Source : PTI