EU foreign ministers to meet on PA statehood bid
The EU’s 27 foreign minister’s are scheduled to meet in Poland on Friday, in a session expected to go a long way toward determining how the bloc – whose votes have been courted heavily by both Israel and the Palestinians – will vote on the PA’s UN statehood recognition bid later this month.
The meeting comes two days after French President Nicolas Sarkozy told a conference of French ambassadors that it was very important for the EU to speak together on this matter.
“I hope that the 27 countries of the European Union will speak with one voice and that together we will assume our responsibilities,” he said, urging a greater role for Europe in the Middle East diplomatic process.
The chance of this happening, however, seemed slim, since some countries – such as Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland, have indicated they will vote against the proposal. A number of other countries, such as Spain, Ireland, Belgium and Luxembourg, are expected to vote for the resolution.
So apparently, the formal vote won't take place until 'later this month'; between now and then there will be a lot of lobbying in both directions. Additionally, it will be interesting to see how the EU will handle the differing views of the various countries as they attempt to speak with one voice.
This is yet another development worth watching closely.
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