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USIA - Albright Meets with European Foreign Ministers, 97-09-24

United States Information Agency: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The United States Information Agency (USIA) Home Page at <http://www.usia.gov>

ALBRIGHT MEETS WITH EUROPEAN FOREIGN MINISTERS

(Cyprus discussed; U.S.-France to talk about Algeria) (830)

By Judy Aita
USIA United Nations Correspondent

New York -- U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright urged the foreign ministers of Greece, Turkey, and Cyprus to "seize the window of opportunity" and "act with statesmanship" to solve their differences, senior State Department officials said September 24.

State Department spokesman James Rubin told journalists that in Albright's meetings today with the three foreign ministers "the summary throughout that she repeated to each of the leaders in those three meetings was that now is the time for statesmanship."

Rubin reported that Albright said, "There has been plenty of time over recent months and years for discussion on why one side is right and why the other side is wrong. Now with the window of opportunity that we see in the EU accession and the general progress toward resolving such disputes, it's time for statesmen to be statesmen and act with statesmanship." Albright's separate meetings with the three ministers "reflected the kind of high level attention the administration places on addressing the problems of the region," Rubin said.

"On Cyprus, she reiterated the view that a window of opportunity is now open," the spokesman said. Albright "urged all the parties to use their influence to find a solution and refrain from actions that increase tension."

During what State Department officials were calling "Europe Day" on Albright's schedule while attending the opening of the U.N. General Assembly, the secretary had separate meetings with French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine, Greek Foreign Minister Theodhoros Pangalos, Cypriot Foreign Minister Yiannakis Kasoulides, and Turkey Foreign Minister Ismail Cem; attended a lunch of European ministers hosted by Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jacques Poos; consulted with Contact Group for Bosnia, and met with the Southeast European Cooperative Initiative.

Albright and Vedrine discussed commercial activities, NATO expansion -- especially about getting the accession agreements completed and obtaining U.S. Senate ratification; European economic relations; Iran; Algeria; and the importance of keeping U.S.-French relations "in the best possible light, " the spokesman said.

Albright "emphasized the need to follow through on public declarations, so that the cost estimates for NATO enlargement will be understood and that the estimates, while moderate, will be met by all the Allies," Rubin said.

However, most of the discussion was on Albright's recent trip to the Middle East, Rubin said.

Vedrine's reaction "was quite positive -- he thought she had sent just the right messages," Rubin reported.

On Iran, Albright "emphasized in great detail the importance we attach to containing Iran and the danger that Iran's weapons of mass destruction pose, " the spokesman said. "She also mentioned the intention to follow through on our laws regarding Iran and Libya."

Knowing how important the Algerian issue to France, Albright decided to broach the subject with Vedrine, he said.

After discussing the nature and extent of the problems in Algeria, and given their "general desire to coordinate activities around the world so that we can be working in a complementary fashion," the spokesman said, Albright and Vedrine "agreed that it would be useful to get people together and have a serious, substantive and wide-ranging discussion on whether there is anything specific we can do," he said.

No date has been set for the meeting, Rubin said.

In her talks with the Greek and Turkish foreign ministers, Albright also "continued her efforts to facilitate a conversation between the governments on the issues and problems that divide them," Rubin said.

Albright "regrets the fact that a breakthrough was not made" during the July ministerial meeting in Madrid, Rubin said. "The fact that there was not progress underscores the difficulty of these issues and the sensitivity on both sides."

Albright outlined "very clearly her views on ways to address some of these critical issues and said that her ideas will remain on the table and if the opportunity arises and we think it could be useful, we would be prepared to engage again."

Rubin also said that as an observer at the Council of Europe, the United States intends to call attention to Croatia's "non-compliance" with the promises it made when joining the Council in November 1996.

"Zagreb agreed to fulfill a number of specific conditions, including refugee return and cooperation with the War Crimes Tribunal," Rubin said. "In our view, Croatia's performance on these issues has fallen woefully short."

It will be up to the council to make its own assessment, Rubin said, adding that the United States has been urging its European allies "to keep the pressure on Zagreb until it meets its obligations under Dayton (agreements), including and especially on war criminals and human rights."


From the United States Information Agency (USIA) Home Page at http://www.usia.gov


United States Information Agency: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
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