23/01/2017 (Agence Europe) – Adama Barrow, the new president of The Gambia, currently taking refuge in Senegal, will soon take office as ECOWAS mediators managed on Saturday 21 January to convince his predecessor, Yahya Jammeh, to go into exile, ensuring a peaceful end to the crisis that was immediately welcomed by the EU. ‘Today, the will of the Gambian people is being respected and the way for President Adama Barrow cleared. The positive and peaceful outcome of the post-electoral stalemate in The Gambia is the result of extraordinary regional and international coordinated efforts with ECOWAS in the lead,’ said EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica in a joint press release on Sunday morning. They added: ‘We confirm our full support to President Barrow and reaffirm the European Union's readiness to assist The Gambia and its people.’ (see EUROPE 11708). (AN)