Support for Blair
June 28, 2007
Merkel said that Blair was the unanimous choice of the Middle East Quartet linking the European Union, United Nations, Russia and the United States in their roles as mediators in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Blair would deal directly with the quartet, she said following talks with French Prime Minister Francois Fillon in Berlin.
"The political responsibility will remain as before on the shoulders of the quartet," she added.
On Wednesday, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier complained of a lack of consultation with members of the quartet before the appointment was made. Germany is the EU's representative on the panel.
Washington got its choice
Blair held confidential discussions on the post with Washington, which formally recommended him without prior consultation with the other quartet members, press reports said.
The United Nations announced Blair's appointment just hours after he stepped down as prime minister on Wednesday. The United States had pushed hard for Blair -- a close friend and ally of President George W. Bush -- to get the post. Reports said the announcement was apparently delayed because of Russian reservations.
Merkel described Blair as a man of great political experience, who could provide an important contribution to finding a solution to the Mideast conflict.
European media reports said the decision had been made solely between the US and Blair behind closed doors. The quartet was then informed of it later.
Blair's power will be limited
Steinmeier said Blair would receive a closely defined mandate. His work would focus on "institution building in, and political strengthening of, the Palestinian Authority," he said.
This limitation was due to the fact "that the quartet itself wants to keep the political task of shaping the Middle East peace process in its own hands," Steinmeier said. The minister didn't express any doubts about Blair's qualification for the post. But at the same time, he didn't explicitly praise Blair either.
According to media reports, there are concerns in Berlin that Blair could seize the diplomatic process in the Middle East and therefore harm the quartet's work. Other EU member states fear that Blair could weaken the position of EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who has been working on solutions to the Arab-Israeli conflict for years.
"Solana is a member of the quartet while Blair will be working for the quartet," Steinmeier said. "The difference is clear."
Russia held back
UN spokeswoman Michele Montas said on Wednesday that Blair would "mobilize international assistance to the Palestinians, working closely with donors and existing coordination bodies." His tasks included helping to identify and secure "appropriate international support in addressing the institutional governance needs of the Palestinian state," she said.
Blair's work would be "in support of the agreed quartet objectives," Montas said.
A small team of experts based in Jerusalem will support Blair, who will spend significant time in the region, Montas added.
Russia had previously stalled Blair's appointment. According to German officials, Russia had held back its support because of the lack of consultation on the move. Only on Tuesday did Moscow give its assent.
Allies support Blair's appointment
Although he is well respected in Israel, the Arab world has sharply criticized Blair for Britain's role in the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, as well as his support of Israel's war in Lebanon last summer.
But Blair won backing from his allies for his new role.
"Tony will help Palestinians develop the political and economic institutions they will need for a democratic, sovereign state able to provide for its people and live in peace and security with Israel," Bush said.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and Israel also expressed their approval. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert "believes that Blair can have a favorable impact, in particular by helping the Palestinians develop solid governmental structures," his spokeswoman Miri Eisin said.
But the Hamas movement controlling the Gaza Strip said the appointment "is not acceptable to Hamas nor to the Palestinians."
The Middle East Quartet has tried to implement a "roadmap" for Israeli-Palestinian peace since 2003. But the three-stage blueprint that should have led to the creation of a Palestinian state living side by side in peace with Israel by 2005 has since decayed.
The post of quartet representative had been vacant since former World Bank chairman James Wolfensohn resigned in frustration in May 2006.