Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Mugabe welcomes EU delegation with "open arms"
Sat Sep 12, 2009 8:16am EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Nelson Banya
HARARE (Reuters) - President Robert Mugabe welcomed the first top-level European Union delegation to visit Zimbabwe in seven years with "open arms" on Saturday and said talks on implementing a power-sharing deal went well.
Mugabe's change in tone suggested he may be more willing to cooperate with Western powers crucial to Zimbabwe's efforts to secure billions of dollars in aid and foreign investment.
"We welcome you with open arms," he said.
The visit by EU Aid and Development Commissioner Karel De Gucht and the Swedish EU presidency is the first since the EU began targeted sanctions in 2002 against members of Mugabe's government for human rights violations.
"We established a good rapport, it was a friendly meeting. Obviously they thought the Global Political Agreement was not working well," Mugabe, in power since independence from Britain in 1980, told reporters after the talks.
The EU delegation is also expected to meet Mugabe's long-time foe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutumbara, his partners in a unity government formed in February.
Zimbabwe says it needs $10 billion in foreign reconstruction aid. Western nations are reluctant to release cash without further political and economic reform promised as part of the power-sharing deal, called the Global Political Agreement (GPA).
CHALLENGES
The GPA has been beset with problems as the parties accuse each other of not fully implementing the agreement, which Zimbabweans hoped would end daily hardships. Mugabe said after Saturday's talks that the deal was being implemented.
"We should acknowledge the progress made. But there are still matters outstanding. We discussed that openly," De Gucht said.
The EU remains the main overall donor to Zimbabwe, having provided 572 million euros ($829 million) in humanitarian aid to the country since 2002, despite the targeted sanctions.
To date, 203 people and 40 companies linked to the Mugabe government face travel and some financial restrictions within the 27-nation bloc.
Swedish International Development Minister Gunilla Carlsson said human rights and press freedom were discussed.
"This is not a negotiating meeting. It was a discussion with one of the signatories of the GPA," said Carlsson.
Mugabe, who has long held his Western foes responsible for Zimbabwe's economic decline, repeated his call for the sanctions to be lifted. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Mugabe welcomes EU delegation with "open arms"
A year since Lehman: times of crisis
Richard Fuld talks
The former CEO of Lehman Brothers is bracing for the anniversary of the firm's failure. In an exclusive interview, Fuld tells Reuters: "You don't have a gun, that's good." Full Article | Full Coverage
Patience needed in post-Lehman deals
Multimedia: Times of Crisis
More International News
Attacks kill dozens as Afghans await poll results
South Korea says supports U.S. talks with North
Iran signals no compromise on nuclear issue
China sentences suspects in far-west needle scare
Pakistan kills 22 militants in Khyber
More International News...
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Banker lived it up in bank-owned Malibu house: report
U.S. accepts Iran's offer of talks with major powers
Photographer Leibovitz reaches deal with lender
Obama makes healthcare pitch to the insured | Video
Record labels sue over use of songs on "Ellen" show
Forget rivals, rain turns out to be Nadal's No 1 enemy
Body Worlds plans cadaver show dedicated to sex
UPDATE 1-Banker lived it up in bank-owned Malibu house -report
World's oldest person dies in California at 115
Wall St Week Ahead-Big mood shift seen in year after Lehman
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Tape reveals Madoff coaching
Colombia seizes huge drug cash haul
Obama commemorates 9/11
Peru's Lost Tribe
Jackson tribute concert cancelled
Key Democrat wary on more troops
Rockets from Lebanon, Israel reacts
U.S. troops remember 9/11
Financial crisis tour
Few rule changes
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Journalism Handbook |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.