Israel and the European Union also only gave cautious approval of the accord between Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal reached in the Saudi holy city of Makkah.

Under the deal, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya will lead the new government, Abbas's Fatah movement will name a deputy prime minister and the key post of interior minister will go to an independent.

The US administration, which led an international boycott after Hamas won the Palestinian elections one year ago, said it wanted more details of the agreement aimed at ending fighting between Hamas and Fatah.

The US State Department said it wanted to see the "composition or the political programme" of the new Palestinian government.

A State Department spokesman, Gonzalo Gallegos, said any Palestinian government must meet three Western conditions: recognise Israel's right to exist, renounce violence and accept past Palestinian peace accords with Israel.

Hamas, which is on a US "terrorist" list, has in the past refused to meet the three conditions set by the diplomatic Quartet on the Middle East -- the United States, European Union, Russia and the United Nations.

There was no immediate indication if the Makkah agreement embodied the demands.

Israel also highlighted the need for Palestinians to recognise the Jewish state.

"Israel expects the new Palestinian cabinet to respect the three principles laid down by the international community," Miri Eisin, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, told AFP.

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana's spokeswoman Cristina Gallach said, "We are going to look at all the details with the best will in a positive but cautious manner."

Russia, Britain and the UN Secretary General gave more outright praise for Abbas and Meshaal.

"We welcome any forward movement toward the creation of a national unity government, since only in this way can the situation in the Palestinian territories realistically be normalised," Russian foreign ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency.