Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has arrived in Lisbon, Portugal, ahead of this weekend’s EU-Africa summit. He is banned from the EU, but was let in after African leaders threatened to stay away if he was not invited.
UK PM Gordon Brown, who is critical of Mr Mugabe’s human rights record, is boycotting the summit in protest.
EU Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso has criticised Mr Brown’s decision, saying that leaders sometimes have to meet people they disapprove of.
“If you are an international leader then you are going to have to be prepared to meet some people your mother would not like you to meet. That is what we have to do from time to time,” he said.
Overshadowed
The president of the European parliament, Hans-Gert Poettering, expressed his hope that Mr Mugabe’s presence would not overshadow the summit.
“The presence of one person is a fact, but the relations between Africa and the European Union are more important than the presence of this person,” he said.
Mr Brown has decided to stay away |
The highlight of the two-day summit will be the launch of a “new strategic partnership” between the EU and Africa to tackle issues such as development, good governance, peace, security, migration, energy and climate change.
EU aid for improvements to roads, bridges, telecommunications is set to rise to 5.6bn euros in 2008-2013, up from 3.75bn in 2002-2007.
The EU will also be attempting to draw up a number of new trade agreements with individual African countries and regional blocs.
The World Trade Organization has set a deadline for the end of the year, after which the current preferential trade agreement between the EU and the 78-nation Africa, Caribbean and Pacific group will cease to operate.
But the head of the West African trade grouping told the BBC that the EU should extend its 31 December deadline to sign the new Economic Partnership Agreements.
Mohammed Ibn Chambas said many African countries were concerned that the agreements lacked balance.
East African countries have already signed up to the new deals.
Although Mr Brown is boycotting the summit, the UK will be represented by the former International Development Secretary, Baroness Amos.
[BBC]
Unless you class of 2007 african leaders genuinely rebuke one another when you begin to exhibit selfish tendencies poverty in africa will forever be with us.
Mugabe with his Borrowdale Brooke palace that cost his struggling nation millions of pounds should have been asked to stay away from the aid meeting in Portugal by his fellow class mates in the interest of us citizens .