EUROPE: The two-day meeting of the EuroMediterranean Partnership in Dublin Castle saw robust exchanges between the Israeli Foreign Minister, Mr Silvan Shalom, on the one hand, and European and Arab representatives on the other. Deaglán de Bréadún Foreign Affairs Correspondent reports
In a press conference held at the conclusion of the meeting, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen played down the differences, denying a suggestion that the exchanges were "unprecedentedly sharp".
However, it is understood from other sources that there was a "bad atmosphere" at the dinner with European and Arab foreign ministers on Wednesday night. Mr Shalom urged the EU to adopt what he regarded as a more impartial position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and held up the US as a model of this impartiality.
But Mr Cowen told yesterday's press conference: "The EU positions today are totally consistent with the Quartet positions that we agreed on. So the United Nations are saying the same thing, the United States are saying the same thing and the Russian Federation are saying the same thing.
"The Israeli Government position is to support the Road Map. We support the Road Map. Everyone supports the Road Map. Now could we please have some activation on the Road Map?" Informed sources said the relationship between the EU and Mr Shalom was "not that bad".
Mr Cowen and his Israeli counterpart also "get on reasonably well on a personal level". But the Israeli government did not like the EU's insistence that the borders in a two-state solution must be based on the borders of 1967, prior to the Six-Day War.
It is understood that Mr Shalom urged his fellow foreign ministers to press the current Palestinian prime minister, Mr Ahmed Qurie (Abu Ala) to meet his Israeli counterpart, Mr Ariel Sharon.
However, a claim that the Palestinian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dr Nabil Shaath had refused to meet Mr Shalom on a bilateral basis was sharply rejected by the Palestinian Delegate-General to Ireland, Mr Ali Halimeh. He said Mr Shalom had come to "lecture" his colleagues and had "no creative ideas" on implementing the Road Map.
Commenting on the stance adopted by Mr Shalom, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Mr Ahmed Maher told reporters: "My reaction would be that, if you feel that everybody is against you, you must ask yourself why.
"The policy of Israel has created a sentiment that it is not doing what is needed to reach a peaceful settlement that would be in accordance with international law and the interests of all the parties."