Brussels, 29/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - While Catherine Ashton is taking her time in issuing a judgement on the agreement sealed on 27 April between Fatah and Hamas on setting up a Palestinian national unity government and holding presidential and legislative elections in 2012, (the content of which is still being examined by the European External Action Service (EEAS) (see EUROPE 10367), pressure on the EU is mounting for it to express its support for this arrangement. The Palestinian side is finding it hard to imagine that the EU27 reject the agreement which, they say, complies with all the criteria defined by the EU to be able to move forward towards a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “The new Palestinian government will respect all previous PLO agreements, including the Roadmap commitment to an end to violence and the Arab Peace initiative, and it will move toward establishing a Palestinian state on 1967 borders. How could the EU come out against a government that has the same policies as the EU itself on this region? I don't think that is an option”, commented Xavier Abu Eid, PLO advisor, speaking to EUobserver. In his view, the Fatah/Hamas agreement will take pride of place over the former Hamas charter which calls for armed resistance against Israel. Although, in preliminary comments published on 28 April, Ashton underlined that the EU naturally supports all efforts towards reconciliation, it will not be easy for the 27 to reach the necessary consensus for backing the Palestinian agreement, first of all due to the very clear-cut positions adopted by Israel and the United States against Islamic Hamas involvement in a Palestinian government, and secondly because the EU must also review its stance towards Hamas, which is on the list of terrorist organisations.
In the meantime, the delegation of the European Parliament for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council has clearly taken position in favour of the Palestinian reconciliation agreement. A delegation of MEPs, in the West Bank and East Jerusalem this week, considers this is an extraordinary opportunity for putting an end to the division between Palestinians and moving towards the creation of a Palestinian state. The delegation, headed by Proinsias De Rossa (S&D, Ireland), called on member states on Friday 29 April to back the agreement. The EU must not repeat the error made after the Palestinian elections in 2006 when it had refused to deal with Hamas elected representatives, something which “undoubtedly contributed to the divisions between Fatah and Hamas and set back the peace process by years”, Proinsias De Rossa comments. Europe now has the possibility to restore credibility by working with all Palestinian parties, he said. Radvilë Morkûnaitë-Mikulënienë (EPP), who is also a member of the EP delegation in Ramallah and East Jerusalem this week, nonetheless sounds a note of caution, saying in a press release: “As for the Palestinian unity government, the EU should support it only if the unity government expressly and clearly renounces violence and recognises the state of Israel”. (H.B./transl.jl)