As special envoy, the 81-year US statesman will represent the secretary general and the UN system in the international response to the October 8 earthquake which killed about 73,000 people in Pakistan and 1,300 in India, the UN said.

"I am delighted that president Bush has accepted to play this role," Annan said. "I know the Pakistan authorities are too. We know that he is going to bring extraordinary leadership and attention to this terrible tragedy."

"I look forward to serving in the capacity of UN special envoy," the father of US President George W. Bush said. "This is a disaster of enormous proportions and the recovery is going to be a long and difficult task."

Another former US president, Bill Clinton, is serving as UN special envoy for tsunami recovery in the wake of the disaster that killed at least 217,000 people and left millions homeless across the Indian Ocean.

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