EU calls second emergency meeting on Egypt

The European Union has called for an emergency Foreign Affairs Council meeting on Wednesday to discuss the situation in Egypt, following a first round of emergency talks held by the EU’s Political and Security Committee in Brussels on Monday.

The imposition of sanctions on Egypt had not yet been discussed, EU Special Representative for the Southern Mediterranean Bernadino Leon said in a presser following the meeting. The EU would strive to remain a constructive actor in the situation and would continue to promote a political solution, Leon added.

“Egypt is a key partner, probably the most important in the Mediterranean. It is absolutely important, not only for Egypt, but for the whole region and for Europe foreign relations to be engaged constructively in Egypt,” Leon asserted.

High representatives of member nations would draft proposals based on today's meeting to be presented on Wednesday to their respective foreign ministers, Leon explained. The ministers would then decide on the steps the EU would take regarding the current impasse.

Leon stressed that the EU condemns all sides engaging in violence, not only the government.

“Government has a special responsibility, but not the only responsibility. There is violence coming from both sides, and we have been very clear about Coptic churches and mosques that have been attacked, and public buildings that have been attacked ... All violence from both sides has to stop,” he urged.