Mrs. Rama Yade(Photo : F. de la Mure /MAEE)
Rama Yade visiting monks at the Burmese Buddhist Temple of Singapore.French Foreign Minister Rama Yade shares responsibility in Foreign Affairs and Human Rights. On November, 22, Mrs. Yade represented France at the EU-ASEAN summit in Singapore, commemorating the 30th anniversary of relations between the two organizations.
Mrs. Yade made it very clear what France's position was at the EU-ASEAN summit during her speech. She pointed out that ASEAN has achieved many successes, such as adopting the Charter, which reflects many principles of human rights. Yade continues "But we are now at a moment of ASEAN's history, where we have to look towards the future, to the challenges presented to ASEAN towards Myanmar,in particular. Because in the midst of this fruitful process of regional construction, it is regrettable to see that some countries are lagging behind. It is high time that a real process of national and reform takes place in Burma, through dialogue between the Burmese leaders and an opposition enjoying the freedom of speech and movement...
France rallied in favour of the reinforcement of European sanctions. The Union saw to it that these measures send a firm message to the Burmese leaders without affecting the Burmese people. It has moreover indicated its readiness towards reviewing or even lifting sanctions if real progress is made. Other paths could be considered, for example, the creation of a fiduciary fund to help development projects."
After her speech, Mrs. Yade spoke with Mr Ibrahim Gambari, UN Special Envoy for Burma. Yade also visited the the Burmese Buddhist Temple of Singapore, where she and other foriegn ministers met and spoke with temple monks.
To read Yade's complete speech on Burma
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