By Jason Webb MADRID, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Spain's prime minister visited the site of Saturday's deadly ETA blast at Madrid airport on Thursday and defied widespread criticism by insisting he could still achieve a negotiated end to the Basque conflict. The huge car bomb, claimed by ETA in a telephoned warning, killed at least one man, ending nine months of ceasefire and forcing Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to end a peace process on which he had staked significant political capital. The Socialist leader's hesitant initial reaction to the blast, in which he was unclear about whether talks were finished or not, and his five-day delay in visiting the bombsite have provided easy targets for the conservative opposition. Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy, who had opted for the high-risk strategy of opposing peace talks, beat Zapatero to be photographed at the bomb scene by two days. But, speaking from the wrecked airport car park building where rescue workers were still searching for a likely second victim, Zapatero was defiant in the face of one of the stiffest tests of his political career. "Here, from the scene of destruction just a few days after this terrible attack, I want to say that my energy and determination to see the end of violence, to reach peace, is even greater," he said. More talks with ETA, which killed over 800 people in four decades of unpopular armed struggle for Basque independence, would now seem unlikely before general elections in early 2008. And the spectacular end to the peace talks, just a day after Zapatero made headlines with a public declaration of optimism about the Basque Country, could now make these elections a tougher prospect for the Socialists, some analysts believe. DISASTER FOR ZAPATERO "On the one hand, it's pretty obvious that the bomb and the breaking of the ceasefire is a disaster for Zapatero," said Juan Carlos Rodriguez of consultancy Analistas Socio-Politicos. "But it depends on how people interpret this. They could see it as a failure for the government or just predictable behaviour by terrorists," he said, adding he thought the Socialists would still beat the opposition conservative Popular Party. But, despite buoyant economic growth, which has Spain nipping at Italy's heels in terms of wealth per capita, the Socialists have only a narrow opinion poll lead over a Popular Party still traumatised by its shock 2004 defeat to Zapatero. Not previously regarded as a political heavyweight, Zapatero won election after the PP government was widely judged to have bungled its reaction to Islamist train bombings in Madrid. Once in office, the new prime minister annoyed opponents with a programme of devolving power to the country's regions and by legalising gay marriage. "Zapatero was a totally inexperienced leader," said an analyst from a Madrid think-tank, who asked not to be named. "He really felt that he had to make his mark." Telegenic but often a stilted public speaker, Zapatero has long been aided by disarray within the Popular Party, many of whose supporters still insist ETA was behind the Islamist train bombings in March 2004. The Popular Party is now looking forward to likely victory in a key Madrid regional election in May. But many Spaniards have been irritated by the PP's opposition to a negotiated solution to the Basque conflict.
