OIC Secretary-General receives letter from EU External and Security Affairs Chief – OIC press release/Non-UN document

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation receives a letter from the EU External and Security Affairs Chief

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Prof. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, received a response letter from the High Representative and Vice President of the European Commission for External and Security Affairs, Baroness Catherine Ashton, saying that the European Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation share the same goal of finding an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through negotiations, leading to two states living side by side in peace, security and mutual recognition.

The High Representative expressed concern about the lack of progress in the peace process, and confirmed her personal involvement to strongly pursue efforts to revive direct negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis. Besides, the Baroness indicated in her letter that the European Union's position views settlements, including those in east Jerusalem, the separation barrier, where built on occupied lands and the demolition of homes and evictions as illegal under the international law. She stressed that these initiatives run contrary to the current EU and Quartet efforts to bring about the resumption of peace negotiations.