(7 Sep 2003)
1. Exterior of Egyptian foreign ministry
2. Photo-op of EU foreign minister policy Javier Solana and Egyptian foreign minister Ahmed Maher
3. Cameramen
4. Wide of news conference
5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Javier Solana, European Union Foreign Policy Chief:
"No. Again, I refuse to say that the road map is not alive, it is alive. It is a difficult road map we implement, we know we have ups and downs, but this is the only document we have here that allows in the year 2005 to have two states, a Palestinian state and an Israeli state, with the dates to be implemented, so we have to maintain that line. We have never had anything like that approved by the whole international community, so those who say it is dead they are killing the hope and killing the possibility of having that done."
6. Reporters
7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Javier Solana, European Union Foreign Policy Chief:
"Prime Minister Abu Mazen is a very dignified personality - what he has done in less than four months as a prime minister - let's hope that we will continue - a tremendous effort. He has not received all the help that he could (have)expected to receive, but I want to say very clearly that he is a very dignified personality and we respect him very much and we hope he will have the chance and the possibility to have what he had in mind to be realised in reality."
8. Reporters
9. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Ahmed Maher, Egyptian Foreign Minister
"We are making contacts with different Palestinians parties because we believe that all the Palestinian parties are keen to maintain the Palestinian's national interest and therefore they will close their ranks and avoid what ever might harm the peace process."
10. Exterior Arab League headquarters
11. Photo-op Secretary General of the Arab League and Solana
12. Wide shot of news conference
13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Javier Solana, European Union Foreign Policy Chief:
"I said very clearly that the prime minister Abu Mazen first is a very dignified person that has my respect, second that he did not receive all the help that he should have.
Q. From which side?
A. From everybody. I've granted five points that he made yesterday to justify his position and I think that the five points, the five points probably are right.
14. Wide of news conference
15. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Amr Moussa, Arab League Secretary-General
"I think the decision (the EU's change of stance on Hamas) is conditional and temporary, and we hope it is that way. The point is not to accept Israeli demands but to negotiate around it, and maybe what you've just said is true, but we hope that the EU would not accept this kind of dangerous blackmail that could affect the credibility of the policy of the EU."
16. Exterior of Arab league
STORYLINE:
European Union foreign affairs chief Javier Solana has insisted that peace efforts will continue in the Middle East despite the resignation of the Palestinian prime minister.
Solana arrived in Cairo on Saturday night for talks with Egyptian leaders and Palestinian and Israeli officials in the hope of averting more violence in the Middle East.
He's will also discuss the fate of the US road map peace plan following Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas' resignation on Saturday.
EU foreign ministers, who ended a two-day meeting on Lake Garda in the Italian Alps on Saturday, reacted with dismay to Abbas's resignation following a long power struggle with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
But Solana said EU efforts to maintain peace in the region would not be hindered by the current situation.
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