Brussels, 05/12/2007 (Agence Europe) - A delegation of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee (AFET) was in Damascus from 30 November to 1 December, and then in Beirut until 3 December. The delegation was composed of Véronique de Keyser (PES, Belgium), Ignacio Salafranca (EPP-ED, Spain), Ana Maria Gomez (PES, Portugal) and Bastiaan Belder (IND/DEM, Netherlands). Ms de Keyser, who headed the trip to Syria, noted on her return to Brussels that the mission, the first ever undertaken by AFET in the current context, comes at a time when the strategic stakes for the region are considerable, given the peace process in the Middle East (Annapolis conference) as well as the troubled developments in Lebanon. Relations between the two neighbouring countries underpin the current Lebanese crisis marked by a power vacuum and intense international effort (headed in particular by three EU foreign ministers, Messrs Kouchner, D'Alema and Moratinos) in order to achieve a swift outcome. For the time being, Ms de Keyser said, Syria is “back in the game and out of its isolation” thanks to the game of pressure-persuasion delivered by the three foreign ministers. Véronique de Keyser recommends direct EU dialogue with Damascus to encourage the Syrian regime to play a “constructive” rather than negative role during the current phase of the Lebanese crisis.
The delegation discussed with the main members of the Syrian government (deputy prime minister, foreign affairs minister, economy minister), the speaker of the Parliament and various academic figures including the Grand Mufti who, according to Ms de Keyser, showed remarkable commitment towards secularity. The result of this is that Syria remains willing to sign the association agreement with the EU but does not wish to be subject to specific political conditions. Ms de Keyser went on to say that Syrians seem to be most concerned by the fate of the Iraqi refugees, whose numbers now currently make up 10% of the Syrian population. The conditions in which these refugees are hosted are reported to be deplorable despite the efforts made by the Syrian government. The latter stresses that the means available to it are very limited not only at the humanitarian level but also when it comes to managing the flows of refugees. There is a growing crime rate among the refugee population, exploited by elements that are difficult to control. International aid is inadequate and its application slow. Ms de Keyser stressed the need to provide greater support to Syria to face up to a situation that she now considers alarming.
In Lebanon, various meetings confirmed that the situation is developing day by day and could very soon result either in breaking the institutional deadlock (a compromise candidate has been put forward to hold the seat of the president of the Republic, General Sleimane, Chief of Staff) or an end to the dialogue between the many factions with the risk that this could lead to conflict. (F.B.)