EU foreign ministers has decided to send a peace mission to the region, but admitted the Israeli cabinet would dictate who will go and who they will meet with.
"The EU will be in the Middle East tomorrow," Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique, whose country presides the EU, said early Thursday after a four-hour emergency ministerial meeting in Luxemburg.
"We asked for meetings with (Israeli Prime Minister Ariel) Sharon and (Palestinian leader Yasser) Arafat," said Pique. "We're waiting to see how far we can get. If we can speak to everyone, that will be okay. But the EU will be there tomorrow."
Meanwhile, the Israeli cabinet announced Thursday morning that Israel would not allow the European Union contingent to meet with PA Chairman Yasser Arafat in Ramallah.
Pique added the 15 ministers had not decided any additional political initiatives "because there are enough of them already. They must be implemented, particularly the most recent UN Security Council resolution," which calls for the immediate withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian territories. "Israeli forces must withdraw," he said.
"We will make perfectly clear that the legitimate fight against terrorism, which we all support unreservedly, should not be confused with the destruction of the power structure of the Palestinian Authority (PA)."
The PA, he said, is the "legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and ... of the future democratic, viable Palestinian state which we believe is the only solution to the current situation."
Powell
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Wednesday he was weighing a meeting with Israeli and Arab leaders during a trip to Europe next week. "My mind is open," Powell told reporters at the State Department. "We are examining all possibilities. I would not rule out meeting with anybody where it would serve a useful purpose."
However, Powell was skeptical that headway can be made amid carnage, noting that the United States has been unable to start significant negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. "We find ourselves in a circumstance where we can't get to that point, because we have to get the security under control," he said.
"I think we have been engaged from the very first day of this administration," Powell said. He admitted "there might be a slight difference in focus" between the United States and its European allies.
Powell is to leave Monday for Germany and talks with German officials. He then is to go to Spain to meet with European foreign ministers and with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
