Brussels, 10/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission is expected to adopt on Wednesday a communication from the External Relations Commissioner, Chris Patten, calling for instruments for the application of the EU strategy to prevent conflicts.
Four areas have been singled out: 1) the EU policy on integration and stability, based on what is being done in the east European countries and in the Balkans; 2) the more systematic use of instruments for a more stable political environment: support for democracy and the rule of law, independent media, training of police officers, etc.; 3) the setting up of indicators to forecast conflicts, based on an analysis that would be conducted by a German foundation, based on the experience acquired by some member states in this field; 4) the more systematic processing of regional issues that could be a source of conflict, such as water management and drug or diamond trafficking, for example. The Commission could come up with a diamond certification system to stem the funding of conflicts from this type of trade, such as in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Commissioner Patten's communication stresses co-ordination between the Commission and the member states and with international organizations, such as the OSCE, the UN and the World Bank. Similar to reflections made in recent years, the communication underscores that political dialogue with third countries lacks flexibility when crises arise, and suggests a more frequent use of special envoys, based on what is being done in the Middle East and in the Great Lakes region in Africa.