Tel Aviv - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to depart for Italy and France on Tuesday for his first trip to Europe since taking office nearly three months ago.

He is scheduled to meet Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in Rome on Tuesday, before travelling to Paris for talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy the following day.

Netanyahu is also scheduled to meet US President Barack Obama's special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, in Paris on Thursday.

Israeli ambassador-designate to the United States, Michael Oren, said last week that Israel was hoping to hear Washington's response to its compromise proposals on Obama's demand for a total settlement freeze in that meeting.

Netanyahu's tour comes little more than one week after he outlined his policy toward the peace process with the Palestinians and for the first time publicly expressed support for a - demilitarized - Palestinian state.

But the hardline premier rejected the demand for an absolute freeze on construction in Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank, insisting that the natural growth of existing settlements should be allowed.

Netanyahu was initially slated to make the Italy-France visit a month ago. Although his office denied this, Israeli media at the time reported he had postponed the trip because he feared a cold reception over his refusal to publicly endorse a two-state solution.

An early May visit to Europe by Israel's controversial new Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman of the ultra-nationalist Israel Beiteinu coalition party, was kept out of the limelight.

Iran's nuclear programme as well as Israel's request to upgrade relations with the European Union - which many Europeans want to make conditional on progress in the peace process - are expected to be at the centre of Netanyahu's talks with Berlusconi and Sarkozy.

The premier's spokesman, Mark Regev said Netanyahu "is eager to engage with the European leadership." The leader of the hardline but mainstream Likud party "seeks a constructive and cooperative dialogue with European leaders," Regev told the German Press Agency dpa.

The Israeli leader is expected to visit Germany and Britain later this summer.

Netanyahu took office on March 31, following Israeli elections in which the right-wing bloc of parties headed by the Likud won a majority of mandates. (dpa)