British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has told world leaders that they risk seeing protectionism dominate the world's trade agendas if a liberalising trade agreement can not be worked out in next week's G8 summit in Japan.

Brown said time was running out for the world to secure a deal liberalising the world's trade however the Guardian reports his officials are confident that a deal can be struck despite a recent row between the French president Nicolas Sarkozy and EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson.

Brown's aides are increasingly optimistic that a deal to liberalise global markets in industry, agriculture and services can be struck despite the recent row between the French president, Nicholas Sarkozy, and the EU trade commissioner, Peter Mandelson, over the union's willingness to make concessions in a final round of talks expected this month in Geneva.

A British official said: "What is needed is politicians to give a lead to the negotiators because sometimes negotiators just like negotiating."

Officials have been over-optimistic in the past, but they believe if no progress is made when the major players meet then a trade deal is off the cards for up to a year as a new US president studies the issues. [source]

U.S. President George Bush has defended his decision to invade Iraq in an interview with the Observer newspaper and downplayed differences in strategy with U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

In what was seen as a slight to  the British PM, who is expected to announce a full withdrawal of British troops before the end of the year, the president said there "should be no definitive timetable" for withdrawing troops out of Iraq.

Bush added he hoped the prime minister would:

"listen to our commanders, to make sure that the sacrifices that have gone forward won't be unravelled by drawdowns that may not be warranted".