As Presidency of the Council of the EU, Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik has instructed the Austrian embassies in the countries that are affected or may be affected by tensions surrounding the publication of cartoons of the prophet Mohammed to intercede with the Foreign Ministries concerned for increased security measures for European citizens and European installations. The authorities in Egypt, Algeria, Ethiopia, Iran, Jordan, Indonesia, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and the Palestinian Territories were also reminded of their obligations under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations to protect the diplomatic missions of the EU Member States.
Following the violence of the last few days, Austria’s diplomatic representatives in Damascus, Ramallah and Beirut have also protested to the governments concerned. In the name of the EU, they have demanded that protection for European citizens be ensured and further acts of violence prevented under all circumstances.
Moreover, the representative of the country chairing the Organization of the Islamic Conference was called to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vienna, where the concerns of the EU were once again clearly expressed to the member countries of the OIC.
“What is important is the security of our citizens and of our installations at the local level. We have therefore called on all responsible authorities to take the necessary steps to ensure that this security can also be guaranteed in practice", Plassnik declared.
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