Israel has the "utmost respect" for outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and his appointment as the Quartet's Middle East envoy would be a "terrific decision," Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Tuesday, as Quartet envoys meeting in Jerusalem discussed the appointment.

Blair's appointment is expected to be made Wednesday when he formally ends his tenure as prime minister, with simultaneous statements to be issued in Washington, New York, Brussels and Moscow. The Quartet is made up of the US, the EU, Russia and the UN.

Lavrov, whose Hamas remarks irked J'lem, arrives

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert phoned Blair Tuesday, on the last day of his tenure, and said he has proven to be a "true friend" of Israel. If Blair would take on the new position, Olmert said, Israel would cooperate with him "fully."