Labour MEP for Dublin Proinsias De Rossa speaking today in the European Parliament in Strasbourg in the debate on the Middle East, has said, 'The statement agreed by the European Foreign Affairs Council last Tuesday is a welcome and timely re-affirmation of the European Union position with regard to how a viable and contiguous democratic Palestinian State can be achieved, which will also deliver security for the state of Israel.

'There are two commitments I specifically want to welcome which may have the potential for creating a new dynamic; Firstly, support for the Palestinian Authority's two year programme for ending the Israeli occupation and establishing the Palestinian State; Secondly, the Union's "readiness, when appropriate, to recognise a Palestinian State"

'Last week I led an official European parliament visit to the Occupied Palestinian Territories where once again I saw with my own eyes the apartheid system being implemented by Israel against Palestinians, along with the dispossession and destruction of their homes, their lands, their water, and even their places of worship.

Having been given Israeli permission to go into Gaza, we were, within hours of the publication of the Council statement banned from doing so. This is not the action of a friendly state. Rather, it is a gross and unacceptable interference in the democratic rights of this parliament to maintain and develop its relations with the democratically elected representatives of the Palestinian people.

'On our visit we found widespread despondency and hopelessness in Hebron, Jerusalem, and Ramallah concerning the possibility of a Palestinian state due to ongoing building of Israeli settler colonies on Palestinian land. Where there is hopelessness, there will be violence. We are at a point now where we can help make progress, or we can let the situation slide into bitter violence which will drive moderate Palestinian politicians out of leadership.

'The Council statement calls for a re-invigorated engagement by the Quartet. I appeal to the Council and to the High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Cathy Ashton, to specifically re-invigorate the EU's engagement by putting in place a step by step programme for the implementation of the principles in the statement, coinciding with the Palestinian Authority's two year state building programme.

'In that programme we must vigorously defend human rights; we must use access to our market to 'incentivise' Israel to accept its responsibilities under international law. Let me be clear, I'm not proposing sanctions. I am talking about applying our own laws with regard to respect for human rights when allowing preferential access to our markets and programmes. Finally, we must persuade the USA to urgently re-engage on the same basis as laid out by the European Union.