As the Middle East Quartet considers naming outgoing British PM Tony Blair as its new envoy, it is important to note that he will only be able to succeed if his work on the Israeli-Palestinian issue is tackled along with the broad range of interconnected crises of the broad NEASFram region.

Additionally it is critically important that Mr. Blair recognizes the different obligations of this role - he must not be seen as narrowly pro-American or Israeli or European. He needs to bridge 5-7 important audiences - and this will not be easy. Nevertheless, Mr Blair can be a key piece of a NEASFram type approach to the region where multi-track diplomacy is given a chance. Let us hope that this is the first of many positive steps.