Former US President Bill Clinton has ruled out the possibility of reaching a comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue and the the Arab-Israeli conflict within the next four years, the UAE's WAM news agency reported Monday.

Clinton, who made the statement in his keynote speech at the Arab Strategy Forum 2004, urged all parties, including those in the Middle East region and the United States, to continue to strive toward comprehensive and just peace, which would guarantee security for Israel and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

He noted that there is a need for the United States to remain a fair peace-broker and more transparent in dealing with the issue of the Middle East.

The Arab region needs the support of friends including the Europeans and the Americans to achieve peace and establish an independent Palestinian state and set up an Arab free zone in the region, said Clinton.

He promised he would play an effective role in achieving the long-cherished peace on condition that both the Palestinian and Israeli sides trust in the US mediation role.

The former US president pointed out at the first day of three-day forum, which is themed "The Arab World in 2020", that he saw two opposite scenarios of what the Middle East could be like in 2020.

The negative scenario was an Arab world dominated by terror.

"There would be continuing conflict with Israel, no Palestinian state, and some states would try and develop weapons of mass destruction and terrorist groups would try and do the same, there would be exploding population, excessive reliance on oil and resistance to necessary economic, political and social change including education and empowerment of women," Clinton said.

The positive scenario he saw, said Clinton, was an Arab world at peace with Israel, a Palestinian state serving its peoples, Arab nations joining in a vast Arab free trade zone, cultural renaissance, regional cooperation for security against terrorism.

Moreover, an Iraq independent and responsible with a representative government, Iran giving up its nuclear ambitions, good education and healthcare, eradication of poverty, an Arab world close to both the East and the West and with new ties to new economic powers like China and India, he added.

About 2,000 political, business and media leaders attended the forum, including Libyan Prime Minister Shukri Ghanem, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.

The participants were going to discuss the most difficult questions facing the Arabs, including key factors that influence governments, trends in governance, security, political and economic reforms and moves toward democracy.