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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 February 1999 Issue No. 417 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 February 1999 Issue No. 417
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Special Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Europe's turn
By Salama Ahmed Salama
The presidency of the European Union changes every six months, and each time the foreign minister of the nation which assumes the presidency visits the Middle East. The purpose of the visit is to reaffirm the policies of the European Union on the peace process and the Arab-Israeli conflict, and to assess any developments in the stances of the relevant parties.
A change in the EU presidency, however, does not necessarily mean a change of roles. Since the peace process began with the Madrid conference in 1992, there has been an understanding between the US and Europe that the European role should be confined to helping the parties to the conflict economically and encouraging them to formulate initiatives toward a peaceful settlement. The US, on the other hand, may participate directly in the process, through mediation, negotiations or diplomatic efforts. The European Union is kept informed of the latest contacts and talks through a European coordinator.
The current Middle East tour of Germany's foreign minister falls within this context. He has already visited Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Syria and Egypt, not only to keep abreast of the latest developments in the peace process, which has hit a brick wall thanks to Netanyahu, but also to arrange for President Mubarak's official visit to Germany.
Although the European Union, presently headed by Germany, has abstained from using its influence to intervene in the crises that have befallen the peace process, the coming six months will require more positive and decisive stances, leading either to real steps toward peace or to a collapse of peace efforts. Israel has frozen the Wye Accords and continued with its colonial policy of building more settlements in anticipation of the approaching elections. The Palestinian leadership continues to oscillate between declaring the creation of a Palestinian state on 4 May or postponing this until after the Israeli elections, in a bid to deny the Netanyahu government the chance of reneging on its commitments.
The new German foreign minister, at any rate, was not surprised much by Israeli Foreign Minister Ariel Sharon's refusal to see him on the pretext of an injured knee. Sharon's move was aimed at the European Union, which Israel accuses of siding with the Arabs and the Palestinians -- this because the European Union voted in favour of a draft resolution by the UN General Assembly calling upon the nations that signed the fourth Geneva Convention to evaluate its implementation on occupied Palestinian land, including Jerusalem. The conference, to be held next July, will arraign Israel before the International Criminal Court when it starts to operate, on the charge that Israel has violated the Geneva accord and that its colonial activities, especially the construction of settlements, are war crimes. This will put an end to European aid to Israel, and could entail punitive measures.
The European Union's vote for this resolution can be considered a positive step in the long run. In the short run, however, it cannot really be considered a form of pressure on Israel to implement the Wye agreement. The only real pressure the European Union is exerting at present is upon the Palestinians, to convince President Arafat to postpone his declaration of the Palestinian state until after the Israeli elections. The EU, however, cannot offer Arafat any guarantees if the elections bring extremists to power. If that happens, Europe will let the US deal with the problem -- as it has done every time the peace process has encountered an obstacle. Nevertheless, the EU's consistency in blaming Israel for the non-implementation of the Wye Memorandum, which has triggered a storm of protests and accusations from Israel, is now the least Europe can do. Maybe that knowledge will be of particular help to Mubarak during his visit to Germany.
