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| By: Associated Press |
| Published: September 12, 2006 |
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Austria's foreign minister called Tuesday on the European Union to invite Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to its headquarters in Brussels.
"It would be interesting to hear firsthand from the Palestinian president how he evaluates the internal Palestinian development," Ursula Plassnik said in a statement.
"I therefore repeat my suggestion made at the informal meeting of foreign ministers in Lappeenranta to invite President Mahmoud Abbas to this Friday's Council meeting in Brussels," she said.
On Monday, the Islamic group Hamas struck a deal to share power in the Palestinian government with the more moderate Fatah headed by Abbas after six months of crushing international sanctions imposed to force the militants to recognize Israel and end violence.
Without the foreign aid, the Hamas-led Palestinian government has been unable to pay salaries to its tens of thousands of civil servants, causing widespread hardship.
"This is a long-awaited, encouraging sign of hope for the Palestinian population and for the entire region," Plassnik said.
"After the standstill of the past weeks, there is again movement in the region's core issue," she said. "We have to use that resolutely." |
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