CAIRO: Enhancing relations with Egypt, especially on the political level, is the top priority for the European Union delegation here, Ambassador Marc Franco told a press conference Thursday. The delegation ambassador stressed sentiments of coherence, stability and cooperation. The event, which was held to illustrate the functions of the EU institutions under the relatively new Lisbon Treaty, was punctuated with questions about the EU's stance on President Hosni Mubarak's health and the ongoing case of Khaled Saeid, the 28-year-old beaten to death by two policemen. In response to reports questioning the president's health, Franco said, “his health is excellent and those reports stating otherwise are false.” The question of the successor was raised along with others about the expected outcome of the upcoming elections. But as Franco noted, the EU is staying out of this; “because it is not up to us to take a position, this is an internal matter for Egypt,” Franco stated. When it came to the investigation into Khaled Saeid's death, Franco lauded the Egyptian government. “I have full confidence in the Egyptian government to do something about police brutality and work toward bettering the situation. We have no official stance on the case, but available to help if needed,” Franco stated. The Middle East peace process was stressed as a top priority for the delegation, citing last week's visit of High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton, to Gaza and talks of President Hosni Mubarak with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. “The European Union respects movement and access and fully supports the complete lift of the blockade,” Franco said. The EU's foreign policies and streamlining of operations are at the center of the Lisbon Treaty, which came into force December 2009. In compliance with the Lisbon Treaty and to ensure more coherence and continuity in their work, a relatively permanent presidency of the European Council has been introduced. The first president nominated for a two-and-a-half-year term is former Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy. Franco touched on the overall objectives of the Belgian EU Presidency, such as climate and environment, justice and the reinforcement of the social dimension of the EU, and Europe's foreign affairs. Those objectives are also top priority in Egypt. The protection of the environment was mentioned with Franco saying, “Europe should not only act internally, but also externally to promote a carbon low environment.”
