Brussels, 21/09/2010 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament foreign affairs committee decided on Monday evening (20 September) to organise hearings for five of the 27 new heads of EU delegations, designated last week by High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton (EUROPE 10215, last Wednesday) in an effort to ensure that they possess the right knowledge and experience to take up these very important and key strategic posts for the EU. This will involve hearings for Markus Ederer from Germany, who will head the delegation in Beijing, Hans Dietmar Schweisgut, Austria, (the current permanent representative for his country to the EU), who has been sent to Tokyo, Philip Dimitrov, Bulgaria (former prime minister for his country), who will be the EU representative in the Georgian capital of Tbilissi, Angelina Eichhorst, the Netherlands (Beirut) and Lars-Gunnar Wigemark from Sweden, whom Ashton appointed to head the delegation in Islamabad. MEPs also want a hearing for the EU special representative in Sudan (EUSP) Rosalind Marsden from the United Kingdom, who already took up her job on 1 September, when she replaced Torben Brylle. MEPs could possibly express criticism of one or other of the candidates but they do not have the power to block their nomination, which is exclusively within the remit of Ashton. During the conclusion of the political agreement on implementation of the European External Action Service (EEAS) last June, it had been agreed that the EP would not have the right to scrutinise nominations of the special representatives and EU ambassadors but that they could request hearings for them before they took up their positions. (H.B./transl.fl)