Union bids to boost its image among Israelis

Date: 29/07/1999

By Simon Taylor

THE EU is planning a major new initiative to improve its image with the Israeli public in a bid to help the Union play a greater role in the Middle East peace process.

The scheme, which will be called the EU-Israeli forum, is designed to dispel the negative image of the Union in the minds of many Israeli citizens by explaining what the EU does and emphasising areas of cooperation with Israel.

Finnish Foreign Minister Tarja Halonen is planning to unveil the project during her visit to Israel next week, and European Commission officials expect the forum to be up and running by the end of this year.

The initiative, which is the brainchild of the Union's special envoy to the peace process Miguel Angel Moratinos, will sponsor a range of activities designed to highlight the positive sides of the EU-Israeli relationship. One official explained that the Israeli public assumed that the Union was "pro-Arab and pro-terrorist" in its Middle East policy, and that the forum would work to "dispel negative myths" about the EU. "We need to reinforce the line that the EU views Israel as a technical, social and historic partner," he said.

The forum, probably based in Tel Aviv together with the other EU delegations, will have its own secretariat. It will only receive small-scale funding to cover running costs to start with, but the Commission hopes to attract sponsorship from the private sector for other schemes in the longer-term.

The initiative is part of the Union's attempts to bolster its ability to play a more constructive role in the Middle East peace process.

Up until now, its efforts to maintain the momentum behind talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians have been hampered by mistrust on the Israeli side and a feeling that the EU is interfering in matters which only concern the two main protagonists.

Israeli officials complain that the Union takes politically motivated decisions which undermine its claim to be an "honest broker" in the negotiations. Earlier this year, the EU provoked a storm of outrage in the Middle East state when it threatened to exclude Israel from participation in a five-year research and development programme.

EU governments are currently considering how best to help achieve a lasting peace settlement in the region, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the willingness of Ehud Barak's new government to restart talks with all the parties including Lebanon and Syria. Barak has set himself a 15-month deadline for concluding talks, a target which is broadly in line with the timetable which was suggested by Union leaders in March.

At last week's meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Moratinos urged governments to get as closely involved in the negotiations as possible. "We should try to influence the terms of the talks in a way that a sustainable peace is attained and that European interests are well protected," he added.

The envoy suggested inviting Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy and Palestinian President Yasser Arafat to a meeting of Union foreign ministers in September to get a clear picture of their stances on key issues and requests for help.

He also called for an early meeting of the EU-Palestinian security committee, and rapid progress on implementing a number of projects seen as vital to the viability of the Palestinian economy which the Union is backing. These include giving the territory a separate air and seaport, and guarantees of safe passage for Palestinians moving between territories.

In addition, Moratinos insisted that the EU should also try to relaunch regional development programmes which have been blocked by Arab states because of a lack of progress in the peace negotiations.