Al-Ahram Weekly Online 10 - 16 January 2002 Issue No.568
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875		Current issue | Previous issue | Site map

EU for peace

President Hosni Mubarak met with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana yesterday for talks on the latest developments in the Palestinian territories, during the EU envoy's mission to the region.

Solana told reporters later that despite the current "delicate" conditions, efforts will continue to push the peace process forward. "We cannot lose hope," he said. "Even at the most difficult moments there is an obligation to continue. You will never see us throwing [in] the towel." Solana added that there are several peace initiatives on the table, but what is needed is "the political will to restart" talks.

Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said that "the picture is not rosy at all, but Egypt and the EU are determined to continue working for peace." Maher is counting on the efforts of the US, EU, Russia, United Nations, Egypt and Jordan to bring the Palestinians and Israelis back to the negotiating table and end the violence.

On Tuesday night, Solana, accompanied by several members of the EU mission, attended a dinner hosted by Al-Ahram's Board Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Ibrahim Nafie. The dinner, held at Al-Ahram's offices and attended by a number of senior Al-Ahram editors and columnists was an occasion for lively, if off- the-record, debate. Predictably, the discussion focused on the situation in Israel/Palestine, the "war against terror" and the European role.

IGAD summit

The seven East African leaders of the Inter- Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) will meet in the Sudanese capital Khartoum today to discuss regional conflicts as well as the US-led war on terrorism, which has put both Somalia and Sudan on the defensive. The two countries, both members of IGAD, have been accused by the US of hosting or supporting terrorist groups.

The summit will be held Thursday and Friday, after two days of talks in Khartoum by foreign ministers of member states Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda.

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