UK wants "proper monitoring" of any Zimbabwe runoff

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called on Monday for "proper international monitoring" if there is a runoff of Zimbabwe's presidential election.

Zimbabwean ruling party and independent projections point to a runoff between veteran President Robert Mugabe and old rival Morgan Tsvangirai after the March 29 vote in the former British colony. The opposition said it won outright.

But no results have yet been released from the presidential election, fuelling opposition suspicions that Mugabe is playing for time to find a way to keep his 28-year hold on power.

If a second round of elections is held, "it's very important that there is proper international monitoring," Brown told a news conference.

"I believe there is a united will of the international community that elections have got to be seen to be fair, election results have got to be published, elections have got to be properly monitored," he said.

During the first round, Zimbabwe banned monitors from Western countries, such as Britain, that are critical of Mugabe.

Brown held two hours of talks with South African President Thabo Mbeki on Sunday and said he was also in touch with other African leaders on Zimbabwe.

British officials declined to give details of the talks with Mbeki, who has previously mediated in Zimbabwe's political crisis and has been accused by critics of being soft on Mugabe.

Tsvangirai flew to South Africa on Monday for talks, aides said.

(Reporting by Adrian Croft; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)