Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-06-06-Speech-3-080"
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"en.20070606.13.3-080"2
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".
Mr President, as we all know and as Mr Solana has just said, the atmosphere in the region is extremely tense. I would even say that there is even a sense of despair. My director is still there and he has just called me. Unfortunately, security has deteriorated and we are witnessing a vicious circle of violence, particularly in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in Israel and in Lebanon, as Mr Solana has just said.
The Palestinian people desperately need a political perspective. We, the members of the Quartet, are all clear on that. This is why we must press for negotiations on a final status issue, cooperating with the structures set up by the Arab League. The Arab League asked Israel to free certain measures also related to the occupation, for instance the settlements and the separation barrier. I was very encouraged by President Abbas’s call for an immediate end to this internal violence, because Qassam rockets from Gaza have to stop once and for all. The ceasefire should indeed be extended to the West Bank. I very much regret that tomorrow’s meeting between Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas had to be cancelled, but we apparently have to realise that the two sides could not reach agreement on Abbas’s plan for a ceasefire, in particular on linking the ceasefire in Gaza with the cessation of military operations in the West Bank. No agreement was possible, either, on unfreezing Palestinian clearance revenues withheld by Israel before the release of the kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit. We had hoped for some movement on this. The Palestinians decided that they could not risk this meeting, but of course we had all hoped that this would give a little more progress on the dialogue on the ceasefire, progress on the transfer of revenues and on movement of access.
Regarding the National Unity Government, in my opinion now is certainly not the time to give up on it. I can agree that it has not yet delivered everything we were hoping for, but there are no attractive alternatives. If we allow this Government to crumble, the implications for the institutions of the Palestinian Authority are very grave and radical splinter groups may be strengthened as a result. I think this is the last result we would want.
As you know, within the limits set by the Council of Ministers, the Commission has responded quickly to the National Unity Government and to the increased needs of the Palestinians. In the first half of 2007 alone, we committed EUR 320 million of Community funds, which almost equals the total amount of funds committed last year. This exceptional effort shows that, since the formation of the National Unity Government, we have stepped up our emergency assistance to the Palestinians. But the financial situation of the Palestinian Authority is extremely grave, as Salam Fayyad told my colleague yesterday. They still need us to go on even with this mechanism. Israel must release the withheld clearance revenue to the Palestinian Authority. I think we therefore will have to go on encouraging them to do so via the temporary international mechanism or through the PLO account. We reiterated this request at the last Association Committee with Israel in Jerusalem on 4 June. The Quartet has also noted the importance of the resumption of transfers to improve economic and humanitarian conditions in the West Bank and Gaza. As I said, movement is of course essential in any case.
Since the formation of this National Unity Government, we have been working very closely with the Minister of Finance. Because the socio-economic situation is so dire, we will extend the TIM until 30 September and we must look for fresh funds for this new extension. I will soon ask the European Parliament and the Council to make another effort and to find additional resources in the budget. I thank you for whatever you have given as support in the past and do hope that this support will also be extended to us in the future, because our priority task should be to help restore the institutions of the Palestinian authority so that it can then deliver services to the Palestinian people. We are trying gradually to shift towards a resumption of institution-building and development projects, and to decrease our current concentration on emergency and humanitarian aid if we can do so – of course, this condition is still there.
We look forward to new Palestinian proposals. They said they would come up with ideas for specific international support. The Palestinian Authority is currently preparing an operational plan which could then be a useful tool for identifying development activities, particularly in Gaza, that we could support.
I would also like to say that the financial deficit of the Palestinian Authority is so large that it would be impossible for the Community to shoulder the burden alone. Arab States also have to deliver on their commitments to help the National Unity Government. I was encouraged to see that the PLO account established now was at least used by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. This will help but it is not sufficient.
If the causes of this despair are not addressed, we may very soon witness the consolidation of more radical groups throughout the region. I think this is the great danger there. In Lebanon, as Mr Solana has just said, fighting has now spread to other Palestinian camps. We are therefore deeply concerned that the confrontation between the Lebanese armed forces and the Islamist insurgents is there. This has turned out to be the most serious internal conflict since the end of the civil war and has already cost over 100 human lives.
I would like to stress once again our full support for the legitimate government of Lebanon. I would, however, repeat our position that everything possible has to be done to avoid further casualties among the civilian population. The relief agencies must be able to carry out their work.
On the other hand, I would also like to express my satisfaction with the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1757, which secures the establishment of a special tribunal on the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. I think this will allow the people of Lebanon to affirm respect for the law and the rule of law in their country and to turn a page on one of the most tragic events in Lebanon’s recent history.
The meeting due to take place in Gaza tomorrow between President Abbas and Prime Minister Olmert has unfortunately been cancelled, but at least the leaders of the G8 will tomorrow be tackling the issue of the Palestine-Israeli conflict, as we did at the G8 Foreign Ministers’ meeting. There was the greatest concern about the political and security developments both in Gaza and in Israel, but also recognition that there is no alternative to continuing this humanitarian support and, on the other hand, to exploring how to support this Arab peace initiative.
Even at this very delicate and difficult time, we believe that there is still some reason for hope, because the Israeli initiative is a unique opportunity for a comprehensive solution. We know that the Egyptians too are trying to broker a ceasefire with all the Palestinian factions. US involvement, particularly the involvement of Condoleezza Rice, is very valuable at this difficult time. Our EU Presidency is also very committed. The Quartet has done exactly as Mr Solana has said, I think it was a very good meeting and the idea is there for both the bilateral track and the regional track. Hopefully the meeting can come about in Egypt with Arab League interlocutors and hopefully also with the two parties.
Two days ago I spoke to the Jordanian Foreign Minister, Mr Abdel Ilah Al-Khatib, who is planning, with his Egyptian counterpart, to visit Israel before the Arab League meets with the Quartet at the end of June. We hope that this will help to further engage Israel and encourage it to respond positively to the Arab peace initiative.
Last week I also attended a conference in Vienna on the role of women leaders as contributors to peace and security in the Middle East. Prominent women, such as Tzipi Livni, Hanan Ashrawi, Condoleezza Rice and others, discussed the potential contribution of civil society, of women in society, to peace. Even if it is a small contribution, this was the first time that Tzipi Livni and Hanan Ashrawi had held discussions at the same table. I must say that there was quite a lot of mutual understanding and there was even a friendly atmosphere. The initiative proved to be another useful part of this very difficult process. I plan to organise some sort of follow-up meeting in Brussels, perhaps next year.
We very much appreciate the European Parliament’s involvement: the visit by the EP Delegation for Relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council was followed by your visit, Mr President, and by your very balanced speech in the Knesset on 30 May. It is encouraging that the speech, as you said, was quite well received by the Knesset. This is not an easy opportunity."@en1
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