Tony Blair was Britain's Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007. He has always put himself forward to be a key figure in intervening in Middle East diplomacy, strongly aligning with US imperialist policy. His involvement now spans nearly three decades. As Prime Minister he backed Israeli Zionism. Subsequently he took up the role as a "peace envoy" and developed US-Zionist policy to support Israel and quell the Palestinian struggle. Blair's actions have aligned with preserving the status quo of Israeli dominance, under a pragmatic philosophy of formulating "peace solutions".

Blair's role while in office (1997-2007) showed him as a close ally of US President George W Bush, particularly during the war against and invasion of Iraq. In line with this, the Blair government frequently spoke of "Israel's right to self-defence", especially during the Second Intifada of 2000-2005. Blair played the role of an influencer for US imperialist policy within the European Union, in line with defending Israel's "right to self-defence", his government standing out in ignoring calls for exerting pressure on Israel regarding the expansion of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land or military actions in Gaza and the West Bank. In 2001, he stated: "Israel has a right to protect its citizens. Terrorism must be condemned unequivocally." In fact, following 9/11, the Blair government framed the struggle of the Palestinian people in terms of the so-called "War on Terror", thus attempting to legitimise Israeli military action against the Palestinian resistance. In a 2004 speech, he said: "The struggle in the Middle East is part of the same battle against extremism."

Blair has repeatedly affirmed his belief in a "two-state solution" as the only viable path to peace. In 2002, he backed the Roadmap for Peace of the Quartet (UN, EU, US and Russia), which explicitly called for a "sovereign, viable, and contiguous Palestinian state alongside Israel".

Following his period as Prime Minister, Blair served as the special envoy for the Quartet from 2007 to 2015, tasked with promoting peace and Palestinian economic development. This period was marked by the outlook that there must be a "two state solution". As envoy for the Quartet, Blair emphasised economic development in the West Bank, promoting business zones and infrastructure projects. He argued: "Economic progress is not a substitute for political negotiation, but it can support it." His tenure as special envoy was marked by what were referred to as the "security concerns" of the Israeli entity, and collaborating with their occupation of Palestinian land. Blair exhibited little concern with Gaza, especially after the election of Hamas in 2007. The humanitarian crises facing Palestinians in Gaza were ignored. A leaked 2012 memo from a Palestinian negotiator stated: "Blair has become an apologist for Israeli policy." This reflects how Blair has been viewed as complicit in the Ang lo-US programme that has entrenched Israeli control.

In recent developments, the Tony Blair Institute has proposed a Gaza International Transitional Authority (GITA) backed by the UN and Arab states. In a 2024 interview, Blair said: "We need a credible plan for Gaza's future - one that restores order and opens the path to peace." It has been remarked how this GITA proposal is a modern form of international trusteeship, after historical colonial governance methods. As a senior PA official told Al Arabiya: "We cannot accept a model that bypasses Palestinian sovereignty."

Donald Trump has endorsed Blair's plan, pitching it to Arab leaders and suggesting Blair could oversee Gaza's reconstruction and governance. This is being rejected, not least because of Blair's criminal role in the Iraq War, but also because it is based on entrenching Israel as an apartheid state. The world's people will not accept it, and are outraged at the thought that war criminal Blair, in league with the Zionist criminals themselves, could end up as a "governor" of Palestine.

Link to Full Issue of Workers' Weekly

RCPB(ML) Home Page

Workers' Weekly Online Archive