Remarks by EU High Representative Ashton after meeting with Israeli DM Ehud Barak, Tel Aviv – EU press release/Non-UN document

Remarks by High Representative Catherine Ashton following

her meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak,

Tel Aviv, today

"It is always a pleasure to be here.

I'm here the day after the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union which you know I chair. We took the decision to impose new sanctions on Iran. The purpose of those sanctions is to persuade Iran to come back to the negotiating table, to pick up either the ideas that we left there when we met in Istanbul last year, or to put on the table their own ideas, to help us move forward, to help them move forward under their own international obligations.

They have international obligations that they need to abide by, and I really do urge them to do that.  That is what we're seeking to achieve, that is what I know you and your country would like to achieve too.

I'm here too because I believe in the future of your country. I believe the future of this great country lies in finding a solution to the problems and the conflict that exist in this region: to find a way in which Palestinian people can live side by side with the people of Israel under a solution that will bring peace and security for both.

With great changes going on in the region, it's even more important than ever and I will do all I can to help support the people of Israel and the Palestinian people to find that solution.

Thank you."

______________