TEL AVIV: Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was scheduled to declare in a keynote speech late Tuesday that Israel is unfraid of the prospect of Hamas taking power in the Palestinian election, a newspaper said.

"Israel is too strong to be frightened by the prospect of Hamas coming to power," Maariv quoted Olmert as planning to say, adding that Israel will call on Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas to disarm Hamas after today's election.

"I am not afraid of the results of the election in the Palestinian Authority and I hope that, whatever the result, it will move Israel forward towards a settlement with the Palestinians," it added.

He intends to declare that while Israel would prefer a negotiated agreement with the Palestinians, he cannot rule out the possibility of further unilateral withdrawals from Palestinian territory.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice cautioned Palestinian voters on Monday (local time) to bear in mind as they choose a parliament that terrorism is not a "pathway to peace."

Rice also reiterated her support for establishing a Palestinian state and said one was long overdue.

Implying the Bush administration would not work with a Palestinian government dominated by Hamas, Rice said, "the United States won't change its policies toward Hamas."

And referring to potential peace talks with Israel, she said, "It's hard to have negotiations with a party that you do not recognize its right to exist."

British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Monday it would be difficult for the West to negotiate with Hamas if they joined a Palestinian government unless the group renounced terrorism.

Meanwhile, the European Union will not rule out working with a Palestinian Government that included the outlawed Hamas movement after today's election, provided it worked for peace with Israel, a top official said on Monday.

"We are in principle ready to work with any government of the Palestinians that would seek peace by peaceful means," EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said.

Source: China Daily