British Prime Minister Tony Blair led the condolences over the death of Robin Cook, the former foreign secretary who resigned from the Cabinet two years ago in protest at the Iraq war.

"Robin was an outstanding, extraordinary talent- brilliant, incisive in debate, of incredible skill and persuasive power," The Independent on Sunday newspaper quoted Blair as saying, stressing :"Though we disagreed over Iraq, I always respected the way in which he put his case."

Blair said the legacy of Robin Cook would be that he had helped to redefine Britain's relationship with Europe, and had put human rights at the heart of foreign policy.

The 59-year-old MP died on Saturday evening after he collapsing from a heart attack in Scottish Highland while walking with his wife and friends on a holiday.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, called Robin Cook "one of the greatest parliamentarians of our time." "All of us recognized that his disagreements over Iraq arose from principle," said the chancellor who had lately become close after decades of rivalry with Cook.

Respect MP George Galloway, who served in the Labor Party with Cook during the 1970s, praised Cook for his valedictory speech over the Iraq war and said "he was able to see far more clearly than the prime minister (Tony Blair) the hollowness of the claim for the war."

Cook's biographer John Kampfner said he had been "vindicated" for his "principled resignation" in protest over the Iraq war in March 2003, and "really appreciated for the politician that he was."

Source: Xinhua