The EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the Georgian
Crisis, Philipp Lefort ,has arrived in Baku. He said that the South
Caucasus is of great interest to the European Union.
Lefort will meet Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister
Elmar Mammadyarov, Defense Minister Safar Abiyev and Speaker Ogtay
Asadov. They will discuss regional affairs, Trend reports.
The official will then visit Armenia on September 6-7.
French diplomat Lefort was appointed on August 26 and entered office
on September 1, replacing Pierre Morrel (EU Ambassador to Central Asia
and Georgia) and Peter Semnebi (EU Ambassador to South Caucasus). He
will work until June 30, 2012.
Poland, the current chairman of the EU, will have a parliamentary
conference of foreign ministers, with the attendance of the High
Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine
Ashton, ITAR-TASS reports.
The Polish Parliament says that the meeting is to improve cooperation
with eastern and southern partners of the EU, stabilization and
democracy in Europe within the framework of the Eastern Partnership
program.
The conference officially opened yesterday evening as a lunch
organized for Catherine Ashton. Parliamentary sessions will be held
today and on Tuesday.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski will report on foreign
affairs. Chairman of the Seym for Foreign Affairs, Andjey Khalitski,
will discuss the eastern policy. Senate Speaker Bogdan Borusevic and
Deputy Secretary General of the European Foreign Service, Machey
Popovski, will talk on North Africa.
The Eastern Partnership program involves Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus,
Georgia, Moldava and Ukraine. Brussels believes that cooperation
within the partnership will need support for reforms, deals on
association, free trade zones, liberalization of the visa regime and
possibly its lifting.
