Ashton lauds GGC role in resolving Yemen crisis

BRUSSELS, March 23 (KUNA) -- European Union High Representative Catherine Ashton Friday stressed on the growing cooperation between the 27-member EU and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and called for strengthening of ties between the two blocs.
"We work very closely with the Gulf Cooperation Council and recently the (GCC) Secretary General was here. We had a very good debate. We have a strong bilateral relations and we are trying to improve that," she told journalists as she arrived for a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
"We talk with them on a number of subjects. Yemen is very high on our agenda because the way in which they were able to deliver the transition and worked closely with our representation on the ground and we continue to work with them on all these international issues," Ashton added.
She said the EU Foreign Affairs Council will today significantly tighten sanction on Syria with the addition of 12 more names of Syrian official to the EU blacklist.
Ashton said she spoke yesterday with UN/Arab League Special envoy Kofi Annan to express support for his work to stop the violence in Syria.
"I am worried about the escalating spiral of violence in Syria. We are talking to opposition groups outside and inside Syria," said Ashton and urged Syrian President Bashar al-Asad to step down.
Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglou is also meeting with the EU foreign ministers today to discuss Syria . Ashton said she met Davutoglou in Brussels last night and had a long discussion with him over the situation in Syria.
Ashton condemned the military coup in Mali and said "we do hope that the constitution would be restored very quickly." EU foreign ministers will discuss the situation in Syria, the Sahel region and Belarus in their regular, monthly meeting today. (end) nk.gta KUNA 231301 Mar 12NNNN