General Affairs Council (Brussels, November 2, 2004)

Statement by the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson

(Paris, October 29, 2004)

The next general affairs/external relations council will be held in Brussels on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Foreign Minister Michel Barnier and European Affair Minister Delegate Claudie Haignere will represent France.

The general affairs session will be devoted to the preparation of the European Council on November 4 and 5 and will focus on the freedom, security and justice space (new multiyear program) and the Lisbon strategy (mid-term revision).

Foreign ministers will prepare the external relations segment of the European Council, specifically Iraq and the Middle East, at the luncheon at which they will also exchange views on Iran and Sudan/Darfur.

During the time allotted to foreign relations, ministers are due to prepare the 14th EU/Russia summit at the Hague (November 11, 2004) at which the agenda is to include the finalization of a "common space" in four areas (research and education, external security, freedom and justice, economy) and regional and international issues (counter-terrorism, Middle East, Moldavia and the Caucasus).

Ministers lastly will discuss the situation in Somalia, the Great Lakes, Guinea-Bissau and Belarus.

Q - Regarding the Middle East, Mr. Solana is going to outline his plan to relaunch the Palestinian track after Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. Can you tell us now about the main lines you've discussed with your partners?

Mr. Solana, the High Representative, spoke about the matter himself some ten days or so ago. He stressed the need to work on four main points:

- One, security. The aim is to aid the Palestinian Authority to improve its security apparatus in order to fight terrorism and maintain public order. This has all to be spelled out in detail. I am only quoting what Mr. Solana said.

- Point two: assistance to the Palestinian Authority to help it with the political reforms. Mr. Solana said the European Union was willing to assist the Authority to successfully carry out the necessary reforms.

- Point three: economic reforms. Everything possible must be done to ensure the viability of the Palestinian Territories at the economic level.

Point four: support for the electoral process in the Territories.

There are a number of proposals on the table. This will all be discussed in the context, as you said yourself, of relaunching the road map.

Q - You've no details for each point? I believe the draft is already ready. Has it been printed?

I cannot anticipate what will be said since the purpose of the meeting, specifically, is to hear Mr. Solana, hear what he proposes so that the general affairs council can express a position. Then everything will move forward.

Q - Do you think that all the goodwill, Mr. Solana's good intentions and his four-point plan will suffice to meet the dangerous situation on the ground? Don't you think that given the present situation which could become very serious, could turn possibly to chaos, that it is time to rethink this question by placing the Palestinian Territories under occupation, under UN administration?

The responsibility for your comments is yours. I repeat that ministers will be discussing all this obviously in light of the situation, the latest developments and the proposals that the High Representative, Mr. Solana, will be presenting. So I'm absolutely not going to anticipate their discussions. These discussions simply reflect EU resolve--a resolve Foreign Minister Michel Barnier has referred to repeatedly in the past few weeks--to see the EU still more actively and more concretely involved in the relaunch of the peace process and the implementation of the road-map. That's where we stand now. All the rest is pure conjecture, if you don't mind my saying.