Bush issues plea to leaders

George Bush has issued a plea to Middle East leaders

US President George W Bush urged Mideast leaders to work hard to advance democracy and freedom in their region.

"This region is home to energetic people, a powerful spirit of enterprise, and tremendous resources," he said in prepared remarks for a speech at the World Economic Forum in the Middle East.

"It is capable of a very bright future, a future in which the Middle East is a place of innovation and discovery, driven by free men and women."

The White House released an early text of the speech Bush was to make at the meeting of hundreds of global policymakers and business leaders in the Red Sea resort town Sharm el-Sheikh.

After giving Israel glowing praise earlier in the week, the address - which caps his five-day Mideast trip - was focused more on renewed promises.

President Bush presented the region's leaders with a long to-do list: diversify their economies, enact political reforms that move toward democratic governments, allow greater participation in society for women and young people, and push back against the negative influence of regimes like Iran and Syria.

"From diversifying your economies, to investing in your people, to extending the reach of freedom, nations across the region have an opportunity to move forward with bold and confident reforms, and lead the Middle East to its rightful place as a centre of progress and achievement," he said.