Brussels, 18/01/2002 (Agence Europe) - While Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Piqué continues his trip to the Middle East (see yesterday's EUROPE, p. 6), where he met the Chairman of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, on Thursday, as well as Syria's President and Foreign Affairs Minister, the EU Council Presidency and the EU High Representative for CFSP, Javier Solana, strongly condemned the attack that same day in Hadera, in Israel.
In a press release issued on Friday, Javier Solana stresses that the perpetrators of such acts do not serve the interests of the Palestinian people and undermine the efforts for restoring a security climate and the cooperation needed to come out of this crisis that has gone on too long. He calls on Yasser Arafat to take every measure possible to persecute those who, under his authority, do not respect the commitments announced on 16 December by the leader of the Palestinian Authority. In his declaration, the Spanish Presidency makes the same appeal addressed to Yasser Arafat and insists that the attack in Hadera is a further blow to the efforts being made to reach a dynamic that will allow the Tenet plan and the recommendations of the Mitchell Report to be implemented, "efforts that should be stepped up". The Presidency recalls, moreover, the request addressed to the parties by the European Council of Laeken to put an end to terrorism and to move forward in the search for peace.
Shortly before the attack, the Spanish Foreign Minister, Josep Piqué, had met Yasser Arafat. He had told him that the EU especially appreciates the efforts being made by the Palestinian Authority and its Chairman in order to combat terrorism and to maintain the ceasefire and clarify all the elements that continue to trouble the situation still further. Continuing his visit, Mr Piqué went that same day to Damascus where he met Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad and Foreign Minister Farouq al-Shara. Syria and the EU "agree to do everything they can" to rekindle peace talks, said the Spanish minister, describing the current situation in the region as very dangerous. Mr Piqué also said that one should also endeavour to reactivate the Syrian-Israeli talks that were broken off last year. According to the Syrian press agency SANA, President Assad declared he was "not pessimistic" about reaching a negotiated settlement but that he was waiting for Israel to show it is serious in wanting to achieve peace. We recall that Syria considers any peace agreement should be based on the United Nations resolutions, and calls on Israel to withdraw from the territories occupied since the war in 1967, including from the Golan Heights.
Mr Piqué was to be in Beirut on Friday for discussion with the Lebanese authorities.