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(TALKZIMBABWE) Portugal offers to facilitate Zim-EU dialogue

Portugal offers to facilitate Zim-EU dialogue
By: Nancy Pasipanodya
Posted: Friday, June 18, 2010 11:11 pm

PORTUGAL is ready to promote a “platform of dialogue” between Zimbabwe and the European Union, a senior Lisbon official who is currently visiting Zimbabwe indicated this week. Portuguese deputy foreign minister António Braga said this after talks with the Zimbabwean government in Harare.

Mr Braga told Lusa News Agency he had informed Vice-Prime Minister Thokozani Khupe and Foreign Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi of Lisbon’s readiness to serve as a broker despite its sharing the EU view that Zimbabwe had fallen short in its power-sharing scheme.

The news comes as Harare has blamed the western bloc for blocking progress in the talks and for imposing illegal and ruinous sanctions against the country.

International sanctions need a resolution by the United Nations. China and Russia have blocked the UN Security Council from imposing sanctions against Zimbabwe saying the conflict in the country is not "threat to international peace and security" and is a domestic issue.

"It seems to suggest to us that the EU has never taken this dialogue seriously at all," Minister Mumbengegwi said after meeting with Mr Braga.

"They are just playing games with the lives of people of Zimbabwe and I know that in international relations, morality is the first casualty.

"We are still waiting for the EU to indicate to us when our delegation should go there and they certainly seem to be taking their time," added Minister Mumbengegwi.

Early this year, Brussels renewed its illegal sanctions against Zimbabwe for another 12 months. US President Barack Obama also renewed for a year his notorious and discredited sanctions document, the so-called Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (Zdera) imposed by his predecessor, George W Bush.

The sanctions aim to press President Robert Mugabe to give in to demands from the former opposition forces led by current Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai. Among other things, the MDC-T party demands the reversal of appointments of Reserve Bank Governor Dr Gideon Gono and the Attorney General Johannes Tomana. These demands were not in the inclusive Government document, the Global Political Agreement.

Labels: ANTONIO BRAGA, PORTUGAL, SANCTIONS, SIMBARASHE MUMBENGEGWI, ZDERA

posted by MrK @ 5:51 PM