Reports are coming in that Tony Blair is set to stand down as a peace envoy to the Middle East. AP is reporting that the former Prime Minister has tendered his resignation to the Quartet on the Middle East — consisting of representatives from the US, EU, Russia and the UN — and will leave in June. Blair has worked for the Quartet for several years, joining on a wave of publicity and hope in 2007. But with the collapse of the US-led peace talks last year, as well as continual questions about his business links, his efforts to bring peace to the region have been doomed.
Given that Blair’s foreign policy reputation is already toxic both here and abroad, his failure to make a breakthrough with the Quartet will only damage his legacy further. As we discuss in this week’s Spectator (out tomorrow), Isis have created a huge foreign policy headache — one that neither Britain, nor America wishes to tackle, thanks to the legacy of Iraq.
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