By Desmond Hinton-Beales - 11th May 2011
We in Europe know how long and painful the journey to liberty can be
Catherine Ashton
The kind of credibility that Europe needs is in helping to build democracy
Martin Schulz
In many areas, the EU's foreign policy has failed
Lothar Bisky
As things stand, we are heading for an existential crisis for the EAS
Charles Tannock
EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton has announced plans to open an office in Benghazi to "support people, civil society, and the interim transitional national council".
The commission vice-president also reiterated her call for Gaddafi to "go from power and end his regime".
Ashton's comments came during an address to the European parliament's plenary session on a broad range of foreign policy topics on Wednesday.
Addressing the violence between Muslims and Coptic Christians in Egypt, she criticised the "spectre of religious intolerance" and called on the EU to condemn those who seek to use religious belief to oppress.
"Egypt has many challenges", Ashton said, calling on the EU to use its "knowledge, expertise and contacts" to support the nascent democracy.
Ashton also highlighted the situation in Syria, saying that the "Syrian people will not bow to tanks" and advised the regime to "change course now".
The British official also called for Bosnian leaders to "get their eyes off the floor", think about the needs of their country and "see the EU".
Ashton said that she was "adamant that a strong united European response" is needed to the Ashraf camp massacre of Iranian dissidents in Iraq on 8 April, underlining the Iraqi government's duty towards human rights.
"There are members of this house who want a strong defence and security policy," she said, before warning MEPs that there is "still far to go" and that the EU must get "faster and smarter".
"We in Europe know how long and painful the journey to liberty can be," said Ashton, adding that EU foreign policy is "not just about changing governments, but about building the right institutions and attitudes".
S&D group leader Martin Schulz welcomed Ashton's Benghazi office plans, saying, "The kind of credibility that Europe needs is in helping to build democracy - as we are in opening an office to support civilian initiatives and prepare for elections."
ALDE group leader Guy Verhofstadt said, "The EU high representative should give [Syrian president Bashar al-] Assad an ultimatum of a few days to stop his crackdown or face tougher sanctions." Ashton responded by promising to review the list of people in Syria who faced sanctions within a week.
EPP group leader Joseph Daul felt that, a year and a half after the Lisbon treaty came into force, it is now time for the EU to concentrate on practical foreign policy and defence work.
Daul said "2011 should be the year of the Mediterranean, the fight against terrorism, and even a breakthrough in the conflict in the Middle East. If Europe can become a key player on this front, it can leave past mistakes behind."
GUE/NGL co-chair Lothar Bisky was more critical, saying that "In many areas, the EU's foreign policy has failed: in the Arab world, in Afghanistan, in dealing with the Palestinian problem and the conflicts in our eastern neighbourhood."
These comments were echoed by ECR deputy Charles Tannock, who said that, "The major crises of recent months in north Africa and the capture of Bin Laden have shown the European external action service (EAS) led by baroness Ashton to be slow to respond."
"The EAS needs to step up to its envisaged role at least by providing meaningful foreign policy analysis and coordination. As things stand, we are heading for an existential crisis for the EAS," said Tannock.
