Strasbourg, 08/03/2005 (Agence Europe) - During Tuesday's plenary debate on the latest developments in Lebanon (the Parliament will adopt a resolution to which we shall return), Council President Nicolas Schmit pointed out that the EU Council had held a first exchange of views on 4 March with Kofi Annan's special envoy for implementing UN Resolution 1559 and that the High Representative for CFSP, Javier Solana, was to meet representatives of the Lebanese opposition on Wednesday. The Luxembourg Minister for European Affairs said no efforts would be spared to contribute to a political solution “in accordance with the wishes of a majority of the Lebanese people”. He pointed out that the main themes of the EU's behaviour could be: - support to formation of transition government; - support for committee of inquiry into assassination of former Prime Minister Hariri; - support for holding free and fair elections in May, to which the EU would contribute by sending an observer mission if the authorities so wish. European Commissioner Louis Michel said that the Commission was studying “other arrangements” for contributing to the elections, including the training of local observers. Mr Michel recalled that, prior to his death, Rafic Hariri had given his “full support” to the EU Neighbourhood policy, and recognised that the timetable for the “next stages” of the Neighbourhood Policy towards Lebanon will depend on the situation on the ground. “It is clear that it is necessary to know how the situation is developing to know how to move forward”, he stressed. (See yesterday's EUROPE, p.12, on the subject of the delay in adopting the EU/Lebanon action plan in the context of EU Neighbourhood Policy).