The former Prime Minister said the new President would have the chance to heal divisions in an 'era of real possibility'.Speaking during a visit to Rwanda, Mr Blair said world leaders had been too tied up with their own domestic agendas to focus properly on the decades-old Middle East conflict.
He admitted that though he tried to influence the Middle East peace process while serving as Prime Minister, his efforts were doomed because he could not acquire the necessary detailed understanding of the issues.
And he said Mr Obama could heal rifts between America and Europe by being prepared to champion causes regarded as priorities in Europe such as the Middle East, poverty and the environment.
"I think he can say to Europe, look I'm going to champion a global deal on climate change, I'm going to take the Middle East peace process seriously, I'm going to make sure that poverty in Africa is right at the top of the agenda, I'm going to listen to your concerns and get a shared agenda with you."
He said progress would come if America, Europe and the international community delegated genuine authority to envoys tasked with focusing fully on issues such as peace in the Middle East.
Since standing down as prime minister, Mr Blair accepted a number of jobs including the position of Palestinian development envoy for the Quartet – the grouping of America, Russia, the United Nations and European Union.
FULL ARTICLE
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment