Brussels, 08/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - The bilateral talks launched this summer on association agreements and free trade areas, and the forthcoming review of the Eastern Partnership dominated the three Cooperation Councils the EU held with the countries of the South Caucasus - Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan - in Brussels, on Tuesday 7 December. Each of the three countries was represented by its foreign minister. The EU delegation was made up of Commissioner Stefan Füle, Hungarian Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Zsolt Németh (for the next Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers), and EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus Peter Semneby.
Democracy, rule of law, human rights. The press releases issued by the EU after each of the three meetings were practically identical on these issues. The EU called on the three countries to make further progress in the areas of democracy, rule of law and human rights. The EU welcomed a number of measures taken by Georgia in the course of this year, such as the adoption of a new constitution (which will come into effect in 2013 and the reform of the justice sector. The EU also welcomed the recent setting up of a human rights dialogue with Armenia. In all three countries, particular attention must be paid to freedom of the media and respect for the other fundamental freedoms, the press releases say.
Georgia. The Cooperation Council also discussed the situation in the country following the war with Russia in the summer of 2008, the work of the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM) on the ground, the role of the EU in the Geneva International Discussions, and the implementation of the post-war assistance package. The European delegation welcomed the pledge made by President Mikhail Saakashvili to the European Parliament on 23 November not to use force to recover South Ossetia and Abkhazia which have been occupied by Russia since the 2008 war. The EU also repeated its commitment to Georgia's security and stability, based on full respect for the principles of independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within Georgia's “internationally recognised borders”.
Armenia. Satisfied with the process of normalisation of relations between Armenia and Turkey, the EU underlined the importance of ratification and implementation of the bilateral protocols concluded between the two countries “without preconditions”. The EU satisfied with the dialogue between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the conflict in Nagorny-Karabakh and expressed its support for the efforts of the Minsk Group to find a solution to the conflict. Speaking to the press, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan reiterated his country's determination to conclude an association agreement which includes a free trade area (CDFTA). “The negotiations launched in July are on track”, he said. He also expressed his pleasure that talks with the EU could be opened next year on visa facilitation and readmission agreements. Neighbourhood Policy Commissioner Stefan Füle also said he hoped that the EU would open discussions on negotiating mandates for these two issues “at the beginning of next year”.
Azerbaijan. The EU called on Azerbaijan to speed up implementation of the European Neighbourhood Policy action plan and negotiations on its accession to the WTO. (H.B./transl.rt)