"Israel is, allow me to say, a member of the European Union without being a member of the institutions. It’s a member of all the EU programs, including the research and technology programs."JERUSALEM (EJP)---EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said Israel has a closer relationship with the European Union than EU candidate country Croatia. "Israel is closer to the European Union than any other country in the world outside Europe", he told the Israeli Presidential Conference in Jerusalem last week.
Solana pointed to the "deep and close" cultural, historical and trade ties and active participation in all its programmes. "Israel is, allow me to say, a member of the European Union without being a member of the institutions. It’s a member of all the EU programs, including the research and technology programs", he said.
Croatia is candidate to EU and could join the union in 2012. "I don't see the president of Croatia here," Solana said, looking out over the audience. "Don't tell him that," Solana added.
Croatian President Stjepan Mesic was also attending the conference in Jerusalem as part of a visit to Israel.
1 comment:
I don't know if I'd give this much credence. He's saying this in Jerusalem. Would he be saying this in Brussels? He's playing to the local audience, that's all.
I guess we should be glad that he sees it worth his while to assuage the Israelis at all.
Joanne
Post a Comment