Middle East

BERLIN– While Europe remains preoccupied with its own slow-motion crisis, and other global powers continue to be mesmerised by the bizarre spectacle of European officials’ myriad efforts to rescue the euro (and thus the global financial system), clouds of war are massing over Iran once more.

New international sanctions against Iran for its alleged efforts to develop a nuclear weapon are unacceptable and will only worsen chances of a negotiated solution, Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on 22 November.

On 24 November, the European Commission has adopted two programmes in Jordan, which will provide support for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as to research projects, generating economic growth and employment in the country.

The Joint Parliamentary Assembly of members of the European Parliament and lawmakers from African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries condemned the violence in Syria and Egypt and expressed concern over the proliferation of Libyan weapons to al-Qaeda as a potential threat to the entire world.

On 22 November, Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy Commissioner Stefan Füle outlined the modalities of a deeper and closer working partnership with the Anna Lindh Foundation, the first common institution of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.