GENEVA (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair headed for Oman on Wednesday on the first leg of a two-state Middle Eastern diplomatic drive to shore up Arab support for a U.S.-led war against Osama bin Laden.On Tuesday night, Blair held 80 minutes of talks with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Zaid bin Sultan al-Nahayan in Geneva.
He later left for Oman. Officials, jittery about security concerns, declined to give further details or destinations.
Blair's tour follows a similar whirlwind trip last week to Russia, Pakistan and India to help sustain the international alliance which emerged after last month's suicide airline attacks in New York and Washington.
``The (diplomatic) job did not end when military action started -- it's a constant necessity,'' Blair's spokesman told journalists before the premier left London.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair watches as the President of Malawi, Bakili Maluzi, leaves Downing Street in London October 9, 2001. Blair set off for the Middle East on a diplomatic offensive aimed at shoring up Arab support for Washington's war against Osama bin Laden. (Kieran Doherty/Reuters)