Brussels, 11/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - No sooner said than done. On Friday evening, 8 April, the EU lifted some of the economic sanctions imposed on the Côte d'Ivoire. This meets the request made on Thursday by the democratically elected president-elect, Alassane Ouattara (EUROPE 10355).
In an effort to support the legitimate authorities, the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro, the Côte d'Ivoire Refinery Company (IRC) and the management committee for the coffee and cocoa trade were taken off the list of economic undertakings that had had their assets frozen.
The swiftness of this action, adopted by written procedure immediately following its announcement, surprised everyone who thought that they would have to wait until the foreign affairs meeting on Tuesday 12 April to have the decision by the EU formalised. The decision and the regulation will be published on Tuesday 12 April, in the EU Official Journal. Targeted sanctions against Gbagbo and his supporters were reinforced on Thursday 7 April and still apply (EUROPE 10353).
On Tuesday in Luxembourg, the Foreign Affairs Council will have another discussion and is expected to adopt conclusions on the situation in Côte d'Ivoire, following the arrest of Laurent Gbagbo by French special forces.
A crisis that could have been avoided
Jerzy Buzek, the president of the European Parliament, has regretted that the full transfer of power to Alassane Ouattara was only achieved with the loss of human life and at the cost of a serious humanitarian crisis. These are the words Buzek used in his response to the news of Laurent Gbagbo's arrest on Monday 11 April. He emphasised that this crisis could have been avoided if Laurent Gbagbo had accepted the will of his own people expressed at the ballot box. He welcomed the determination of Alassane Ouattara to bring peace and justice to the Côte d'Ivoire and called on all those responsible for crimes against civilians to be brought to justice. (A.N./transl.fl)