Brussels, 18/09/2001 (Agence Europe) - As reported in yesterday's edition (p.5), the European Union will be holding an extraordinary European Council on Friday to review the international situation following the events that hit the United States on 11 September. EU Heads of State, their Foreign Ministers, the High Representative for CFSP Javier Solana, the President of the European Commission Romano Prodi and the European External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten will be meeting at 18: 00 hrs in the EU Council Juste Lipse building and are due to end the meeting around 22: 30 hrs after a working dinner at 20: 30 hrs.
They will begin by hearing from the different EU leaders who visited the United States just before the extraordinary Summit, namely the French President Jacques Chirac, who will be meeting President Bush in Washington on Tuesday; the British Prime Minster Tony Blair, who will be eating with the US President on Thursday; and the European Troika - the President of the Council Louis Michel, the High Representative Javier Solana and Commissioner Chris Patten - who will be in Washington on Thursday for meetings with the Secretary of State Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice, President Bush's National Security Adviser.
The Summit will also review the work of the different EU bodies that have been holding extraordinary meetings following the 11 September attacks in order to respond to the crisis, both politically and concretely, by planning measures to strengthen the common fight against terrorism, namely the General Affairs Council on 12 September which was attended by the NATO General Secretary Lord Robertson (see EUROPE of 13 September, p.14); the informal Transport Council on 14 September (see yesterday's EUROPE, p.9); the meeting to be held by the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 20 September, focussing on combating terrorism (see pp 7 and 8); and the informal ECOFIN Council starting in Liège on 21 September (which will also see changes in its agenda and will look at the potential economic impact of this crisis - see p.11).
Several sources have suggested that at their Summit in Brussels, the EU Heads of State will reiterate their solidarity with the United States, but will also stress the need to avoid lumping Islam in with terrorism.
The Summit will also enable the EU to discuss at the highest level the serious deterioration in the situation in the Middle East (see below). Some countries are expected to focus on the need to use all means at their disposal to deal with the crisis, rather than simply relying on military means.
On Tuesday, Louis Michel, the EU Council President, welcomed the "message of peace and sincerity" from Yasser Arafat, President of the Palestinian Authority. Mr Arafat pointed out that he had informed the United States his country was "ready to take part in an international alliance with a view to putting an end to terrorism against innocent civilians". This message "opens prospects that the Union Presidency fully backs", said Mr Michel, reported by the Belga Agency.
Furthermore, in an interview published on Tuesday by La Libre Belgique, Mr Michel said: "I do not consider us to be at war. We are rallying against a phenomenon of society that we all know, terrorism, but we have not until now given this phenomenon the importance it deserves". "I note that the United States is reacting in a reasonable and sober way. The Americans do not seem to want to (…) counterattack before reflecting on their action", he remarked. Also, to the question of whether he fears that such a riposte would be out of proportion and would mainly affect innocent people, he replied: "With NATO and Europe's support, I am far less afraid. As long as the American authorities have the massive support of the international community, it will be easier to explain to their compatriots that the counterattack must be targeted, precise and well thought out". In his view, "we should have a lasting chance of reducing the outbreaks of violence if we pool our information".
The EU High Representative for CFSP, Javier Solana, also welcomed the clear declaration made by President Arafat in Gaza on Tuesday. In Brussels, Mr Solana said that Yasser Arafat's call for restraint should be heeded by everyone, adding that it was time to get real dialogue going again between Israelis and Palestinians, especially in the parlous situation the world was now facing, and that all the EU's efforts were now moving in that direction.