ST PETERSBURG, July 17: A microphone picked up an unaware US President George Bush saying on Monday Syria should press Hezbollah to ‘stop doing this …’ and that his secretary of state may go to the Middle East soon.

Mr Bush was talking privately to British Prime Minister Tony Blair during a lunch at the Group of Eight summit in St Petersburg about the upsurge of violence in the Middle East.

Neither immediately realised a microphone was transmitting their candid thoughts on that and other issues.

“I think Condi (Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice) is going to go (to the Middle East) pretty soon,” Mr Bush said.

Mr Blair replied: “Right, that’s all that matters, it will take some time to get that together.” Ms Rice had said on Sunday she was thinking of going to the region if it would help.

However, Ms Rice headed back to the United States after the G8 summit closed on Monday, a State Department spokeswoman said.

Mr Blair added: “See, if she (Ms Rice) goes out she’s got to succeed as it were, where as I can just go out and talk.”

The suggestion _ astounding in its bluntness _ appeared to be that when Washington speaks it must mean business, but Britain can get away with airing proposals and absorbing rejection.

Mr Bush replied: “See, the irony is what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this … and it’s over.”

While his language was salty, the message from Mr Bush was what it had been throughout the summit — that Syria is supporting Hezbollah guerrillas in southern Lebanon and should force them to stop shelling Israel and return captured Israeli soldiers.

US officials believe that if Hezbollah did so, Israel’s military strikes on Lebanon might stop.

ANNAN NOT SPARED: Mr Bush also seemed to complain about UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan wanting an immediate ceasefire to stop the violence between Israel and Hezbollah.