EU agrees to extend stay of western troops in Macedonia

EU foreign ministers have agreed that western forces should remain in Macedonia after their current mandate expires on September 26th, despite the Macedonian government's wish that the troops should leave. At a meeting in the lakeside town of Genval, near Brussels, there was broad agreement among ministers that NATO troops should be supplemented by other European soldiers.

There is no question, however, of a force being deployed under the EU's new security arrangements and any operation is likely to be led by NATO.

Most EU member states insist that a new operation in Macedonia must be approved by the United Nations, although Britain's Foreign Secretary, Mr Jack Straw, argued that such a mandate was unnecessary. No force will be sent without the approval of the Macedonian government and EU officials will seek to persuade Skopje to abandon its opposition to retaining foreign troops on its soil.

The EU is likely to use the prospect of a donors' conference for Macedonia next month as a lever in negotiations and the External Affairs Commissioner, Mr Chris Patten, yesterday stressed the high level of EU financial aid to the country.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, said he backed a German proposal to initiate a regional process in South East Europe based on the Helsinki Process established in 1973 to negotiate relations between states during the Cold War.

During the weekend meeting, the ministers agreed the outline of arrangements for a structured debate on Europe's future that will culminate in a new treaty-making summit in 2004. A convention composed of representatives from the European Parliament, the European Commission, national governments and national parliaments would present options on such issues as simplifying the EU treaties and delineating the powers of national governments and European institutions.

The ministers did not say who should be president of the convention but among the names that have been mooted are those of the outgoing Dutch Prime Minister, Mr Wim Kok, and Finland's Mr Martti Ahtisaari. A separate forum would involve representatives of civil society and the candidate countries, mostly in central and eastern Europe, would be represented in both bodies.

Mr Cowen said that the debate should be accompanied in Ireland by an effort to "enthuse" the Irish people about Europe. "Europe is not some esoteric subject. It greatly affects how we live our daily lives in Ireland. That is the lesson that has to be learned from the Nice Treaty," he said. As Mr Cowen left for the Middle East last night, the EU's foreign policy chief, Mr Javier Solana, asked the minister to remain in close contact with him throughout the visit.

Mr Cowen said that, in advance of his meeting with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, he would receive a briefing on the fate of 53 men who have been imprisoned and allegedly tortured following a raid on a gay club in Cairo in May.

The EU, along with Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, has made formal complaints to Egypt about the case.