mr president i think the issue of great urgency today is the state of play in egypt
in two thousand and five i was the chairman of a small observer mission for the elections there
we were asked to go for the first round and then for the second round but the first round was so chaotic and impossibly badly run so corrupt that we decided not to return for the second round
egypt is a country where for thirty or so years a dictator in the person of mubarak has assumed absolute power in a particularly brutal tyrannous and arbitrary rule and while we all recognise the extraordinary evolution on the streets of egypt we also recognise in mubarak's reaction somebody who feels he has got support not only in egypt but elsewhere
now we recognise too that the european union does not have the sixth fleet
we are only capable of projecting moral power so when baroness ashton spoke very softly at the beginning of this debate she unfortunately did not carry a big stick as well
so we have to speak softly yes but also with one voice and i think the problem for europe at the moment is that it is not speaking with one voice at the level of cathy ashton and other leaders
this has been referred to earlier the prime ministers of britain france and germany issuing separate statements
let us speak together
let us get it absolutely straight where we stand in support of democracy and human rights not only in europe but around the world and especially at this time in the mediterranean
