Brussels, 02/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 2 September, Italy's Foreign Affairs Minister Federica Mogherini announced that the decision on new sanctions against Russia is due to be adopted on Friday 5 September. Work began on Monday 1 September between the ambassadors of the EU countries and is expected to continue on Wednesday 3, Thursday 4 and Friday 5 September. “By Friday a decision will be adopted”, Mogherini (who is expected to become the high representative of the EU for foreign affairs) told a European Parliament press conference. She added that the legislative proposal of the European Commission and European External Action Service (EEAS) would be presented to Coreper on Wednesday afternoon.
Mogherini stated that the situation on the ground was becoming “increasingly dramatic”. “This is an attack and we must respond in the strongest way possible”, so that pressure is mounted to find a political solution, she said. She stated that the sanctions were part of a “political strategy”. While the situation is not “encouraging”, Mogherini believed that the contact group meeting on 1 September was “a small light in the total darkness”.
Earlier in the day, while presenting the Italian Presidency's priorities to MEPs from the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee, Mogherini acknowledged that the strategic partnership with Russia was currently over. “Russia remains a strategic player in the regional and global challenges, whether we like it or not, but I don't think that it is still a strategic partner”, she said. “Yet if the conditions were met for working towards a partnership again, no reasonable European could say that this is not in our interest”, she added. She also stated that one of the priorities of the Presidency trio (Italy, Latvia and Luxembourg) was the Eastern Partnership with the Riga summit next May.
During her speech, Mogherini also highlighted the situation in Iraq and in Syria with the Islamic State. “A European framework is needed and efforts must be coordinated so as to shoulder certain national initiatives, especially (sending) military equipment” to prevent the advance of the Islamic State. Libya is also “a big challenge for the remaining period of our Presidency”, she said, explaining that Libya was an important issue in terms of energy, migration and the region's stability (our translation throughout).
Mogherini also highlighted the EU's role in the Middle East. The transversal issues of human rights, especially religious freedom, fighting the death penalty, women's rights and fighting violence against women are Italian priorities. She also stressed the importance of enlargement. (CG)