Incoming High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Italian Federica Mogherini, said the European Union needs to become an effective player in the Middle East.
‘’In the Middle East in particular the EU has been an effective payer, it needs to become an effective player,’’ she said in her confirmation hearing Monday at the European parliament’s foreign affaires committee led by German MEP Elmar Brok. .
The current Italian Foreign Minister has been nominated by EU leaders to succeed Catherine Ashton to lead the EU foreign policy.
She said in response to questions from members of the European Parliament that the technical solution is there for Middle East peace ‘’but the issues are political will and political leadership.’’ ‘’We have the instrument to help Palestine, but first there has to be political will.''
She said that this summer’s violence should have shown that ‘’no return to the status quo is possible,’’ in reference to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
On Iran, Mogherini fears that it will be “extremely difficult” to get an agreement after the current deadline for a deal on Tehran’s nuclear programme set on 24 November. She said that it is a good thing that her predecessor, Catherine Ashton, will continue to lead the international talks with Iran.
According to her human rights and the nuclear programme are ‘’completely separate’’. ‘’Human rights are too important to be part of any other negotiations,’’ she said.
The next EU foreign policy chief also stressed that ‘’we need more and more to develop a common framework for common action to stop ISIL which is not a state not Islam but a major global threat.’’
If confirmed, Mogherini will take her post in November.