Brussels, 09/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - The EU is still not stating explicitly that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak must step down and make way for the democratisation and socio-economic development of his country (at the European Summit on Friday, member states were content only to call for the transition process to begin “immediately”) but if Mubarak becomes “an obstacle to the immediate start of the transition, then the obstacle has to be removed”, EU sources said on Wednesday 9 February. “We cannot wait until the September elections for the immediate transition to be started”, said sources close to EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton. Ashton herself is due to travel to Tunis next week (probably on Monday 14 February) for talks with the transition government on the various ways the EU could provide aid (preparation for elections, development of civil society, reform of the legal system, economic development). She also plans to go to Egypt, but a huge question mark hangs over this visit. Firstly, because of the way things are developing on the ground. “The situation in Cairo is highly volatile. We don't know if the government in place today will still be there tomorrow.” And secondly, because the Egyptian government has apparently said that it did not want to meet with foreign envoys at the moment. “Mrs Ashton wants to go, but Egypt also has to want her to go. If she can, she'll go.” Once there, she will try to hold talks with the authorities in place “and also with all the parties which are in dialogue with the government”. This would mean that she would talk to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Review of ENP and UfM. Following the events of the last few weeks in Tunisia, Egypt and other countries of the region, “it is clear that we will have to have a new look at the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), and also the human rights dialogue that we have been having with a large number of countries for many years”, our sources went on. With regard to the human rights dialogue, “we have to ask ourselves whether this dialogue has had any effect whatsoever on the real situation. And if the answer is 'no', then we have to be imaginative”. (H.B./transl.rt)