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Thread ID: 7945 | Posts: 3 | Started: 2003-07-07
2003-07-07 08:47 | User Profile
[url=http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jul2003-daily/07-07-2003/main/main17.htm]http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jul2003-daily/0...main/main17.htm[/url]
Monday July 07, 2003
Israel wants full EU membership
By Zia Iqbal Shahid
BRUSSELS: Tel Aviv has sent several signals to the European Union conveying that Israel wants full EU membership.
Israeli government has officially told the EU that Israel is expediting its endeavours to resolve all its outstanding disputes with its neighbouring states which is a pre-requisite under the EU rules for acceptance of any country's candidature, a reliable source in Brussels told the News.
The European Union is faced with a new dilemma of handling the fresh diplomatic initiative by Israel seeking a full EU membership with the support of the current EU presidency, while other major EU member states remain divided on the issue.
The European Union was first startled when Israeli Foreign Minister Silver Shalom recently told an EU delegation in Washington that his government was weighing an application to join the EU. The foreign minister was quoted as saying: "possibility, in principle, exists for Israel to join the EU since Israel and Europe share similar economies and democratic values."
Italy holds the current EU presidency. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi supports Israel's inclusion in the EU, and his views on this issue have triggered another crucial debate at the European Union. "My country insists on the vision of expanded Europe that will include Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldavia, the Ukraine, Russia, Belorussia and, of course, Israel. (Israel is Europe??)If Europe wants to compete with the United States, it must find a way to speak in one voice," the prime minister was quoted as saying.
Germany is the first to express deep reservations over the new EU presidency's propensity to support the campaign launched by Israel asking for a full membership of the EU. Germany has reacted coolly to the calls by the Italian prime minister to include Israel, Russia and Ukraine as new members in the European Union.
Despite very close relations with Israel and Russia, Germany is publicly opposing the move aimed at granting EU membership to these countries.
"There are no plans to include these countries into the European Union," German Foreign Ministry spokesman Walter Lindner said in a briefing.
The supporters of Israel's inclusion in the European Union argue that there should be no trepidation in accepting Israel's candidature for the EU, as Turkey, a strategic Middle East player and an Islamic country, has already been officially accepted as a candidate for the EU.
Knowing that under the prevalent EU rules, a country in dispute with its neighbours is not entitled to apply for candidature of the European Union, Israel's sympathisers in the EU are advising the government of Ariel Sharon to keep on expediting official efforts to implement the Middle East "roadmap" besides achieving peace with Syria and Jordan. Israel has already concluded peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan.
The European Union is a major actor in the Middle East, playing a vital role as a member of the "Quartet" of the United States, EU, Russia and the United Nations that have jointly drawn up the roadmap to settle the Middle East crisis.
2003-07-07 08:52 | User Profile
So being a EUROPEAN country isn't a requirenment to be in the EUROPEAN union?
ps - I am glad I don't live in the EU.
2003-07-07 09:20 | User Profile
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