MUNICH, Feb 7: German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer urged Western allies on Saturday to launch a unified initiative for the Middle East this year in which social and economic goals featured as highly as security concerns.

Fischer's plea came in response to a US call for such an initiative for the greater Middle East, fleshed out with his own vision of promoting peace and stability in the area. Washington has so far given no details of its plan.

"In early summer this year, the G8, European Union and NATO summits in rapid succession offer the opportunity to truly launch such a project," Fischer said.

The EU and the United States should pool resources "to form a new transatlantic initiative for the Middle East," he said.

British Defence Minister Geoffrey Hoon said Britain welcomed Fischer's ideas.

Fischer told a security conference in Munich that "destructive jihadist terrorism with its totalitarian ideology" would not be beaten by military might.

"Our concerted efforts to foster peace and security are doomed to failure if we believe that only security issues matter," the German Greens party minister said.

He said the West had to recognise a need to share the fruits of globalisation with a region where half the population was under 18. Iran, Fischer said, would need 800,000 new jobs per year, Saudi Arabia 700,000, but regional investment was falling.

Fischer spelled out a two-stage initiative which would first merge NATO and the EU's existing efforts in the Mediterranean.

This "EU/NATO Mediterranean process", which would include the Maghreb states as well as Egypt, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinians, Syria and Libya, would seek cooperation in four fields - security, economy, law and culture and civil society.

Fischer said the countries involved together tackle security issues, including efforts to control arms, while Europe offered Mediterranean countries economic partnership.

"Why should we not vigorously pursue the ambitious goal of creating a free trade area together by 2010 to embrace the entire Mediterranean area," Fischer said.

In the second stage of Fischer's plan, the group would sign a "declaration on a common future", together with other members of the Arab League and possibly also Iran.

The signatories, Fischer said, would commit themselves to peace and security, would support the integration of their economies and the promotion of human rights and would recognise both men and women had equal access to education.

Fischer said the initiative should neither ignore nor be blocked by the key conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

He urged Western allies to offer a partnership with Middle Eastern countries by the NATO summit at the end of June.

Fischer, touted as a would-be EU Foreign Minister until he ruled himself out of the race, has travelled frequently to the Middle East, while Germany has brokered last month's exchange of prisoners between Israel and Hezbollah.-Reuters