The pair had a "wide-ranging" discussion for 45 minutes

The king came to London on private business and took the chance to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with the UK prime minister.

The two men spent about 45 minutes in talks at Downing Street.

A Downing Street spokesman said they had a "wide-ranging" discussion, during which both welcomed progress in the formation of a Palestinian Authority Cabinet.

They also "took stock" of the situation in Iraq.

Palestinian prime minister-in-waiting Mahmoud Abbas and Yasser Arafat have ended their dispute over the make-up of the new cabinet.

On Wednesday, Mr Blair said he was delighted by that news, which paves the way for America to publish the "road map" to establishing a full Palestinian state by 2005.

US fears

He said the road map would be published as soon as the cabinet had formally taken control.

As hopes for the peace process were raised, Israeli police said a security guard was killed and at least 10 people injured in a suicide bombing on Thursday in the town of Kfar Saba.

King Abdullah has repeatedly said that the Palestinian issue was the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and that leaving it unresolved was a serious threat to regional security and world peace.

This week he said publishing the Middle East "road map" was the only way America could quell fears about its intentions in the region.

He told the BBC about the fears in Arab countries about America's next moves in the wake of the Iraq war.

The king added: "The perception on the Arab street is today it's Iraq, tomorrow it's Syria, who's next?"

Russia trip

The Middle East was at the heart of Mr Blair's talks with his Spanish counterpart Jose Maria Aznar in Downing Street on Wednesday.

The two leaders were joined by US President George Bush in a conference call.

Mr Blair said the talks also covered the current and future situations in Iraq.

Downing Street has confirmed that Mr Blair will visit Russia next week for talks with President Vladimir Putin - their first meeting since the Iraq war.

The post-war situation will dominate the summit, especially as Russia opposed the conflict.

Both Russia and France have now backed the suspension of sanctions against Iraq, something which had been tipped as a potential sticking point at the UN.

On Thursday, UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw told the BBC he believed the war could have been avoided if France and Russia had agreed to a tough ultimatum with the real threat of military action against Saddam Hussein.