Brussels, 31/08/2000 (Agence Europe) - On 25 August, the French Presidency issued the following declaration on behalf of the EU:
"The European Union commends the smooth conduct of the elections in Chiapas, which confirms that democracy has taken a firm hold in Mexico. It takes note of the decision of the voters, the majority of whom were in favour of Mr Pablo Salazar Mendiguchia, the "Alliance for Chiapas" candidate, and it congratulates him on his election as governor of the State. The European Union encourages all those involved in the Chiapas conflict to take account of the public will freely expressed at the polls on 2 July and 20 August and to resume the dialogue as soon as possible in order to seek a negotiated solution to all aspects of the conflict.
The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union, the associated countries Cyprus, Malta and Turkey, and the EFTA countries, members of the European Economic Area align themselves with this declaration".