EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said the bloc, that has maintained sanctions against President Robert Mugabe and his inner circle as punishment for failure to uphold democracy and human rights, remains "ready to continue the dialogue and to respond flexibly and positively to any clear signals of further concrete progress".??
Ashton’s statement came moments after she and EU Development Commissioner Andris Pielbags met in Brussels on Friday with a delegation of ministers representing Mugabe’s ZANU PF party and the two former opposition MDC parties of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his deputy, Arthur Mutambara.
"The EU appreciates some progress made implementing the Global Political Agreement in Zimbabwe," Ashton said in a statement, referring to a 2008 power-sharing agreement between Mugabe and his former foes that gave birth to the coalition government last year.
The Brussels meeting was part of an effort to revive full relations between Zimbabwe and the EU that in addition to sanctions against Mugabe and his top allies also cut direct financial support to Harare.
The EU first imposed sanctions against Mugabe in 2002 following the holding of a violence-marred presidential poll won by the veteran leader.
The European bloc has renewed sanctions several times over the past but has maintained humanitarian support to Zimbabwe. – ZimOnline.
