EU summit to debate Middle East stability, letter confirms

Feb 2, 2011, 10:01 GMT

Brussels - Friday's European Union summit is to debate the surge of pro-democracy demonstrations in North Africa and their implications for Middle East security, according to the official letter of invitation to leaders.

The summit had been scheduled to discuss energy and innovation, but the uprisings against the presidents of Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen have forced summit chairman Herman Van Rompuy to change the agenda.

'We will exchange views on the latest events in Egypt and Tunisia and their implications for the region itself and the European Union,' Van Rompuy wrote in his letter of invitation to EU leaders, in a copy seen by the German Press Agency dpa.

On Monday, EU foreign ministers called for a peaceful transition to more democracy in Egypt. They carefully refrained from commenting on the future of President Hosny Mubarak, saying that that was a decision for the Egyptian people.

But on Tuesday, Mubarak pledged not to run in elections planned for September. Hours later, his Yemeni counterpart, Ali Abdullah Saleh, vowed not to run in elections in 2013.

The EU summit will therefore have to debate the bloc's reaction, including whether the two presidents' pledges are enough to satisfy Western calls for democratic transition.

The summit is also due to discuss how the EU can use its muscle to get better access to Russia's energy resources. Russia is the bloc's largest single energy supplier, and has long been accused of using that position to gain political leverage.

'Energy security is ... determined by our relations with key partners and by the diversification of our routes of supply and sources of energy. How can we ... maximize the added value of the EU in terms of relations with key partners, with this time a particular emphasis on Russia?' Van Rompuy wrote.

Leaders are also expected to debate ways of reinforcing the euro's credibility following last year's crisis. They are not, however, expected to take any decisions until March.

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