Brussels, 21/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - Explaining French ideas recently, Michèle Alliot-Marie called for a redesign of the EU's neighbourhood policy to provide political and financial resources to help and respond to the current transition process in the Southern Mediterranean, adding that a letter to this effect has been sent to EU High Representative for Foreign Policy Catherine Ashton, signed by France and the foreign ministers of Spain, Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Slovenia, setting out French ideas about how the EU can help with this transition process, explained an official government spokesperson.
Joint chair of the Union for the Mediterranean, France says that the EU has to agree on clear policy priorities and resources for its neighbourhood policy with the Mediterranean and should increase its funding for tangible Union for the Mediterranean projects to support small business, solar energy, civil protection, higher education, professional training and the like “so that the EU's action can become visible and tangible in the very near future on the ground in Tunisia and Egypt to support the democratic transition process”.
In the letter, France recommends that the EU should focus on support for democracy, boosting the economy and ensuring a fair sharing of growth, along with social reforms and support for civil society, not to mention encouraging investment and dialogue about immigration. Michèle Alliot-Marie said that France wants to see an acceleration of talks about giving Tunisia advanced status and pointed out the importance of UfM that has been in the shadows recently after its secretary general resigned, the fact that there is no other country sharing the joint-chairing of the process with France (Egypt is currently unable to act and too involved in domestic affairs) and lack of resources for both general operations and running the planned projects (as explained the secretary general in his letter of resignation). (F.B./transl.fl)