{"id":195278,"date":"2003-01-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T16:58:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?p=195278"},"modified":"2019-03-12T16:58:47","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T16:58:47","slug":"auto-insert-195278","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/auto-insert-195278\/","title":{"rendered":"EU and the Middle East – Summary of Remarks by EU High Representative for CFSP – Non-UN document"},"content":{"rendered":"
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"The EU and the Middle East: a call for action":<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

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Summary of the remarks by Javier Solana<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

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\nSummary of the remarks by Javier Solana
\nEU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy<\/span> <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

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at the presentation of Steven Everts' publication
\n"The EU and the Middle East: a call for action"<\/p><\/div>\n

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Centre for European Reform Conference –<\/p><\/div>\n

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Hotel Dorint – Brussels 29 January 2003<\/p><\/div>\n

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please note: this is not a transcript<\/i><\/span> <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

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I would like to congratulate Steven Everts for his study on the EU and the Middle East. I agree with most of the points he makes. Moreover, when he underlines the need for a call for action, I cannot but agree. Because this is what I am trying to do, what the European Union tries to do, and this in a very bleak context. <\/p><\/div>\n

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We meet today the day after the Israeli elections and two days after M. Blix presented his report to the Security Council. The Middle East enters another complicated year. It will be indeed crucial, once again, to maintain a policy and to do politics. <\/p><\/div>\n

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This has been at the core of our action. As I said before, and as we wrote in the <\/span>Mitchell Report<\/a>, in which I had the honour to represent the European voice, we cannot guarantee 100% results, but have the obligation to supply 100% effort. <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

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I read carefully his recommendations . May I say, it has been in various ways what we have tried to do over the last few years, and what we will continue to do. His comments are related to three separate issues: Israel-Palestine, Iraq, the larger picture of the Arab world. <\/p><\/div>\n

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Let me first say that concerning these three hot topics, we have one policy and many ways to implement it. <\/p><\/div>\n

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Over time, and despite a volatile situation; our policy towards the region has become progressively more mature and coherent. <\/p><\/div>\n

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So, let us look first at the Middle-East as a whole. We have a vision. The Middle-East should return to one. <\/p><\/div>\n

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A few years ago, and progressively since the Madrid conference, a crucial attempt was made to have a comprehensive and positive European vision, a project, for the whole region and with the whole region. Today, our efforts are still dedicated to maintaining and developing this legacy – something that I participated in from the outset of the Barcelona Conference. <\/p><\/div>\n

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As solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict its unlikely to put an end to all the elements of the conflict, so the peace treaties, boldly signed by Israel, Egypt and Jordan have not created an enlarged process for peace. It is with this in mind that I went last year to express my support to Saudi Arabia's initiative and later I went to Lebanon to encourage its endorsement by the whole Arab League, chaired by my friend Amr Moussa. <\/p><\/div>\n

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Yet, no clear path to implementing this renewed vision is apparent. This is my main concern. I would like to state what I said to many Israeli and Arab friends: what is your project for your country in one generation's time? What will be your place in the region and in the world in 10 or 20 years? I have never received a clear answer. Ten or five years ago, there were leaders with such a vision, in the same way that Adenauer and de Gaulle opted to open the way for European construction. Today, we have an Israeli State without final internationally recognized borders. We have a Palestinian people without its own State. We have the wider region still awaiting the necessary – and long overdue -reforms, as clearly shown in the last UNDP report mentioned by Steven Everts in his study. <\/p><\/div>\n

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I am sad to say this. But it is the reality. I am deeply sad because we consider that this part of the world is still our neighbour and that we need to build with them a partnership even more today than yesterday. The whole region should listen to the hearts, frustrations, and expectations of their peoples and move quickly through the sometimes painful reforms to a movement for a peaceful partnership. This is the vision we wish for, we have struggled for, and which we will continue to advocate. <\/p><\/div>\n

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As far as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is concerned, supported by the broadest European approach for the last twenty years, continue my efforts to bring back on the table the essential parameters for peace, which should logically be aceptable, and of which we are all aware. <\/p><\/div>\n

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At the Sharm-el Cheikh Summit, we tried to save the efforts of the former US administration to solve the conflict. For various reasons the Summit's decisions were not followed. In our mission, within the Mitchell Committee, we put on the table simple recommendations in order to end violence by rebuilding confidence and restarting final negotiations. All these recommendations remain pertinent, but there was not enough local will to transform wisdom into a policy. Miguel Moratinos took the initiative of creating the Quartet with his US, UN and Russian colleagues last year. We had several meetings at Ministerial level and will continue to do so. I hope, soon to be able to put into motion the "road-map" towards a final settlement that we have been elaborating since last August. <\/p><\/div>\n

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So we continue, with a strong conviction, echoed in Steven's final recommendations to: <\/p><\/div>\n