Brussels, 20/10/2003 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has helped to fund a television series, Sesame Street, produced simultaneously in Israel, Jordan and in the Palestinian territories, it announced on Monday. Aimed at children between 4 and 7, the 77 episodes in the series promote a climate of respect and understanding between Palestinian, Israeli and Jordanian children. The EU has made a financial contribution of 2.5 million EUR to the project (of a total 7.14 million ) under the Meda "Partnership for Peace" programme. The first episodes have already been shown by Israeli HOP!TV, and will be broadcast next week on JRTV in Jordan and the MA'an Network in Palestine. "This is a highly creative initiative. Under the circumstances, it is a good thing that a cultural project aims to bring people together and go beyond stereotypes", said the European Commission's Deputy Director General for External Relations of the Middle East, Michael Leigh, during a press conference. Each episode of the series is based round a story explaining themes of tolerance, children's autonomy, empathy and respect, commented the MD of the "Sesame Workshop" production company, Gary E. Knell.