Luxembourg, 18/10/2005 (Agence Europe) - Meeting for an extraordinary Council in Luxembourg on Tuesday, the foreign ministers of the EU took stock of efforts made by the EU to come to the aid of the victims of the earthquake which hit southern Asia on 8 October. They also express their solidarity with the populations of the devastated countries, in the short and longer terms. "We have underlined the importance of the rapid provision of aid to help the populations to face the harsh winter which is approaching. The financial efforts of the Member States and the European Commission currently stand at 74 million EUR. We all agree that a generous response is required, immediately and in the longer term", the British Minister and president of the Council Jack Straw told the press, announcing that his colleague in charge of development issues would visit the region next week and would report back to the Development Council. The development ministers of the EU will devote part of their informal session of 24 and 25 October (Leeds, United Kingdom) to this natural disaster and the international reaction it has seen.
The conclusions adopted by the Council relay the message of solidarity and generosity of the ministers of foreign affairs. The Council welcomes the rapid reaction of the Commission, which is committed to provide humanitarian aid of 13.6 million EUR to be channelled by ECHO, and that of the Member States, whose commitment stands at 60 million EUR. These funds will help to provide goods (tents, blankets, bedding, water, medical supplies) to the regions affected. The majority of the Member States are also providing coordinated aid via the Community civil protection mechanism and other multilateral mechanisms, in collaboration with the local authorities of the stricken regions. The Council pays tribute to the work of organisations and experts carrying out rescue operations from the whole of the EU. It points out that in response to the appeal launched by the United Nations on 11 October to provide 272 million US dollars, it is ready to cooperate with the European Commission to provide additional humanitarian aid in order to meet needs as and when they appear. The Council welcomes the intention of the Commission to look into all the possibilities of financing-over and above emergency aid- long-term reconstruction and rehabilitation operations in the region.
The Council referred to the work carried out as part of its post-tsunami action plan to reinforce and improve the coordination of available resources (analysis, resource planning, operational conduct and prevention) and thus improve the EU's response capability in similar disasters, and reiterates its intention of continuing with a follow-up of this action plan before the end of 2005.