Brussels, 21/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - The EU will very soon freeze the assets of the deposed Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and his family. A consensus of the Twenty-Seven on this 'restrictive measure' was achieved at a meeting of the experts of the Member States in the Council working group on Maghreb in Brussels on the evening of Thursday 20 January. The details of the European measure - including the exact list of people affected - have not yet been clarified. The services of the Council, working together with the Tunisian authorities, have already started to gather the information they need to draw up a list of the people to be affected by this action and to prepare the legal texts. The ambassadors of the 27 will take stock of this work next week.
This action could then be formally adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council of 31 January, or even earlier, by written procedure. "There is the political will to take sanctions and to do so as quickly as possible", one source explained. Freezing the assets of the Ben Ali family will constitute one of the elements of the 'package' of support measures for Tunisia which the EU is currently looking into. It may also include humanitarian aid (if requested by Tunis), or technical assistance to help the interim authorities to prepare and hold elections. In the longer term, the EU is also reflecting on economic and commercial support measures. Finally, granting Tunisia an 'advanced status' (country having already opened negotiations with the EU on this subject) is also "on the table", our sources explained.
On Wednesday, Switzerland decided, with immediate effect, to block any assets held by the deposed Tunisian president and his entourage in the Confederation, to prevent them from transferring abroad. (H.B./trans.fl)