South Africa, Namibia and Mozambique rallied behind President Robert Mugabe last night and demanded international funding for land redistribution to end Zimbabwe's crisis over the ownership of farms.
In reply, the British government quickly reaffirmed that money was available for land reform in Zimbabwe but that it must be "within the rule of law."
President Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique told reporters after talks with Mr Mugabe that western governments should make good on their promise at a 1998 donor conference to fund the redistribution of farm lands mainly owned by whites.
"We think the donors, including Great Britain, have to deliver. They have to fulfil their commitments," he said after talks that included President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and President Sam Nujoma of Namibia.
"President Mugabe was able to cool down the spirits of the whole people. . . We are happy that President Mugabe is dealing with both the farmers and the veterans," a reference to illegal occupiers and attackers of white-owned farms.
The British Foreign Office Minister, Mr Peter Hain, emphasised in his reaction that finance had been available since 1998.
Mr Mugabe met the presidents of the three neighbour states at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe's top tourist resort, where many hotel bookings have been cancelled because of the violent crisis over the ownership of farmland.
Mr Mbeki said Mr Mugabe and the squatters and war veterans who have occupied hundreds of white-owned farms wanted to end the occupation, but that this could not happen before a formal land redistribution programme was in place.
Mr Mugabe did not speak at the news conference and his colleagues voiced no criticism of his handling of the two-month-old land crisis, in which seven people have died.
Earlier the four leaders met President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and the Rwandan Foreign Minister, Mr Andrew Bumaya, for a separate discussion on the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Mr Mugabe has sent troops to support the government against rebels backed by Uganda and Rwanda.
Andrew Meldrum, in Harare, reports:
A traditional Good Friday procession through Harare took on political overtones yesterday, when the multi-racial gathering of 2,000 prayed for peace in their violence-wracked country.
"We do this every year, but this year it has been bigger," said one of the participants. The march ended at the Catholic cathedral, where inter-denominational prayers were said.
"We always pray, but this year we are praying for peace in our country," said another. "We're praying for God to give wisdom to our leaders."
Those taking part said they were praying for an end to the political violence that has resulted in the loss of eight lives in two weeks. The procession yesterday was entirely peaceful, unlike a peace march on April 1st which was attacked by supporters of President Robert Mugabe.
The Good Friday procession and the people praying fervently for peace upstaged the summit in Victoria Falls.
Zimbabweans feel little kinship with the distant Congo and cannot understand why Mr Mugabe has sent so many men - 11,000 troops - and spent so much money on the war - an estimated $500 million. Most people assume Mr Mugabe and his ruling clique have enriched themselves with Congo's mineral wealth. Certainly, the government has made no secret of the fact that cabinet ministers and generals enjoy lucrative contracts in the Congo.
Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, which poses the biggest challenge to ZANU-PF in Zimbabwean elections due next month, has called on the presidents to put pressure on Mr Mugabe to resolve the crisis.
Mr Tsvangirai and about 1,500 followers attended a funeral in Harare for his driver, Tapsumanei Chiminya, one of two party officials killed in a fire bomb attack a week ago. The opposition leader said: "That he died in the constituency where I am going to stand is already a clear message that they are going to kill to achieve the objective of subduing the whole nation." He added: "I want to tell you that it is a strategy that is not going to succeed."