Brussels, 16/07/2009 (Agence Europe) - Daniel Cohn-Bendit, Co-President of the Greens Group at the European Parliament, and his MEP colleagues Margrete Auken and Caroline Lucas have written to EU High Representative for CFSP Javier Solana expressing their support for his recent proposal on UN recognition of Palestine. In a speech delivered in London on 11 July, Solana had said that the international community should set a deadline for automatic recognition of Palestine, even if Israelis and Palestinians have not reached a peace agreement by then (EUROPE 9941). “We fully support such a proposal and we urge the Council to adopt it formally in order to give a boost to the peace process and step up the pressure on the parties concerned. Peace and stability in the Middle East are of vital importance for Europe. The best answer to extremism and fundamentalism is to make real progress on the way to a lasting and viable solution. Let us not waste further time”, the three MEPs write in their letter. Although Palestinians and Arab countries welcomed Mr Solana's initiative, Israel rejected it. “Peace must be built, not imposed”, said Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. (H.B./transl.jl)