WASHINGTON, March 8: Moved by Congressional dissatisfaction with lack of consultation on the war, US President George Bush on Wednesday met the chairmen and ranking members of the foreign relations committees of both houses and promised more frequent briefings.

Last week, the majority leader in the Senate, Democrat Tom Daschle, had asked the administration for greater clarity about its war aims and the expanding “war on terrorism”.

Congressmen were also irritated by what they described as absence of proper information about the so-called “shadow government” of 100 officials that has been working in secure locations in the Washington area since the Sept 11 attacks.

After the White House meeting on Wednesday, which was also attended by National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, members of the Senate and the House of Representatives were reported to have reiterated their support for the administration’s war objectives.

Middle East and Colombia were also discussed.

On the Middle East, Congressman Tom Lantos, who spoke to reporters later, said he had brought up a proposal he had made earlier in the day to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

The proposal is for Mr Mubarak to go to occupied Al Quds to act as an intermediary in explaining the Saudi vision for the Middle East.

“I think Mubarak has the gravitas and the experience and the knowledge to do this. He certainly did not immediately agree, but he did not say no. And I very much hope that President Mubarak will consider that he has a historic moment as the downward spiral in the Middle East is so obvious to all of us,” Mr Lantos said.

Asked about the Lantos proposal, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said President Bush “believes that if the leaders in the region believe that would be a helpful step, then that’s something that the president would work for and support. But the president met with President Mubarak yesterday, and that was not something President Mubarak indicated.

“So I think there’s also a question of what the president involved — President Mubarak — supports.”

After weeks when the administration appeared unwilling to criticize Israel’s unprecedented attacks on Palestinians, Secretary of State Colin Powell told the House appropriations committee on Wednesday (partly reported in Thursday’s Dawn) that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had to take a hard look at his policies to see whether they would work.

“If you declare war against the Palestinians thinking that you can solve the problem by seeing how many Palestinians can be killed, I don’t think that leads us anywhere.”

Mr Powell’s outspoken remarks were preceded on Monday by a rebuke to Israel from State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, who expressed US criticism of Israeli invasions of two West Bank refugee camps.

In the meeting between Congressional foreign policy experts and President Bush, Mr Lantos, a Democrat, was said to have taken issue with the European attitude to the “war against terrorism”.