( AFP ) - Prime Minister Tony Blair and his successor Gordon Brown will meet international Muslim leaders Monday at a conference aimed at developing understanding between religions.
Egypt's Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa and Bosnia-Hercegovina's Grand Mufti Mustafa Ceric are among the delegates taking part.
They will be joined by Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly, Conservative leader David Cameron, Bishop of London Richard Chartres and Mona Siddiqui, professor of Islamic studies at the University of Glasgow, among others.
The event was organised by Cambridge University.
"There is an urgent need for Islam and traditionally Christian cultures to understand one another, specifically from a religious perspective," said Professor David Ford, of the university's inter-faith programme.
"The conference will focus on the relationship between Islam and the non-Muslim world."
The two-day event is to be held at the Foreign Office's plush Lancaster House mansion in central London.
Inter-faith dialogue is one of Blair's key passions, particularly as a tool to combat Islamic extremism.
He is keen to foster an "arc of moderation" in the Middle East of countries who support democracy, the rule of law, tolerance and peaceful co-existence among faiths against extremists.
Finance minister Brown is set to take over as prime minister on June 27.