Minister Ahern welcomes positive potential of Palestinian agreement on national unity Government

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, has welcomed the announcement in Mecca last night that President Mahmoud Abbas has succeeded in negotiating agreement on the formation of a national unity government.  The Minister looked forward to discussing this important development at the meeting of EU Foreign Ministers in Brussels on Monday.

Minister Ahern stated:

“During my visit to the Middle East last week, it was clear that there is now a window of opportunity to revive the peace process.  The EU and the US are actively engaged in support of renewed substantive dialogue between the Israeli Government and the Palestinian Authority, led by President Abbas.  The objective is a negotiated two-State solution.

At our meeting in Ramallah, President Abbas told me that agreement was close on the formation of a national unity government.  The new Government will be formed in the coming weeks.  President Abbas has asked that it respect all previous agreements negotiated with Israel.  There must also be a clear end to violence.

I believe that there is now a real opportunity for progress, and that the potential of the present situation must be actively seized by all parties.  The EU will have an important role to play.  I look forward to discussing how we can help to build a real momentum for lasting peace when I meet with my EU colleagues at the Council in Brussels on Monday”.