Stockholm / Brussels, 05/01/2001 (Agence Europe) - The Presidents of the European Council and General Affairs Council, Goran Persson and Anna Lindh, received Israeli Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami on Wednesday, with whom they discussed the peace process in the Middle East (which will be one of the main topics of the first General Affairs Council under the Swedish Presidency, on 22 January)
Meanwhile the High Representative for Cfsp, Javier Solana, has been in regular contact with Madeleine Albright (the State Department spokesman said that, between 22 and 31 December, she had called him eight times). Mrs. Albright asked the EU to back the framework proposed by President Clinton for rekindling the peace process and to examine how it could contribute to its acceptance by Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Solana has also had contacts with the parties and with European capitals, and the message to retain is that the EU is prepared to consider all appeals from the international community to play its role in implementing the peace agreement, including in the realm of security (which could involve a contribution by Member States, individually or collectively, in a future international verification force of the peace agreement and border controls, proposed by Bill Clinton: Ed.).