Luxembourg, 09/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - The General Affairs Council meeting on Monday in Luxembourg was dominated by Macedonia and the Balkans (see above). The Council adopted some 20 texts, declarations and conclusions. On the other side of the coin, it refrained from adopting conclusions in which it would have proposed to open up institutional relations with Iran, and instead decided to assess the impact of the arrest this weekend of some 40 opponents of the Iranian regime, and the Council postponed a debate on transparency and access to documents, owing to a lack of progress on the issue. The main results of the meeting are as follows:
United States: pending a more thorough debate in May, the Council welcomed the Commission's communication (see above). Noting that she had taken part as environment minister in the Kyoto negotiations, Anna Lindh said to the press that it was "very important to keep to the hard-won commitments of Kyoto".
Middle East: the High Representative, Javier Solana, took stock of recent contacts with the Israeli authorities (see EUROPE of April 5, p. 4). He said that when the parties are brought together, they are ready to debate in a constructive manner. The problem is that the situation on the ground does not match the debate. The Council debate was brief but interesting over lunch, and despite some differences, the member states are increasingly on the same wavelength, Anna Lindh maintained. She recalled that the EU has called on Israel to halt the development of its settlements (see EUROPE of April 6, p. 4). The EU and other donors will commit to backing a realistic and transparent Palestinian budget during the conference of donors to be held on April 11, in Stockholm, Commissioner Chris Patten stated to the press.
Burma: the Council extended by 6 months the common position on Burma, at the same time that it welcomed in its conclusions the start of dialogue between the junta and the opposition leader, Aung San Su Kyi.
Nagorno Karabak: the Council in its conclusions encouraged the continuation of dialogue between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Messrs. Kochairiau and Aliyev, respectively, which began last week in Key West.
Torture: the Council adopted a declaration clearly defining the details of its policy to combat torture and other types of inhumane treatment.
Colombia: the Council adopted without debate a resolution backing the peace process.
Depleted uranium: the Council noted that there is no tangible proof of any harmful effects of its use on human health but, in light of the health and environmental problems in the region, it will continue to keep an eye on all the studies and to re-examine the situation, according to a summary from the presidency. Moreover, the Council encourages the Commission to take into consideration reports on uranium in its strategic documents on the Balkans.
Enlargement: the Council was expected to carry out in the afternoon its mid-term review of the results of negotiations.
The Council had yet to take stock in the afternoon of the financing for the co-operation programme in the field of energy, called Synergy, and to hold a debate on the future of Europe before starting the meeting on the northern dimension of the EU. The Council adopted a series of texts without debate, including the positions for the meeting of the Co-operation Council with Russia on Tuesday and the agenda of the next Gulf Co-operation Council meeting, set for April 23.