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EU wants explanation from Moscow on hostage storming
EU Business | 03 September 2004
EU wants explanation from Moscow on hostage storming
03 September 2004 = = The EU refused Friday to rush to judgment on how Russian authorities acted in the bloody end to the hostage crisis in north Ossetia, but said it wants Moscow's explanation of the tragedy.
"It is premature now, without knowing the exact situation, to make a judgment on the way the Russian authorities acted," said Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot, whose country currently holds the European Unionpresidency.
"We first have to evaluate the situation with the knowledge of all the details," he told reporters at the end of the first day of a two-day meeting of EU foreign ministers in the southern Netherlands.
But in a later statement Friday evening Bot said the EU will be seeking an explanation from Moscow.
"All countries in the world need to work together to prevent tragedies like this. But we also would like to know from the Russian authorities how this tragedy could have happened."
The comments came after around 100 were killed and over 550 injured as crack troops stormed a school in southern Russia, freeing children and adults held hostage for almost three days by militants demanding independence for Chechnya.
Earlier in the day Bot called the denouement of the hostage crisis in the town of Beslan a "deep human tragedy" and said it appeared that authorities "considered very carefully this situation before deciding to take this action."
Speaking following afternoon talks, he added that "as figures are coming in it turns out that the drama is even greater than I thought."
He notably said that "perhaps at a later date" European leaders could discuss "with our Russian friends" the possibility of creating a joint anti-terrorism force.
"We should also eventually look into what has happened and discuss ... measures that can be taken to prevent such situations from occurring," he added.
EU Business | 03 September 2004
EU wants explanation from Moscow on hostage storming
03 September 2004 = = The EU refused Friday to rush to judgment on how Russian authorities acted in the bloody end to the hostage crisis in north Ossetia, but said it wants Moscow's explanation of the tragedy.
"It is premature now, without knowing the exact situation, to make a judgment on the way the Russian authorities acted," said Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot, whose country currently holds the European Unionpresidency.
"We first have to evaluate the situation with the knowledge of all the details," he told reporters at the end of the first day of a two-day meeting of EU foreign ministers in the southern Netherlands.
But in a later statement Friday evening Bot said the EU will be seeking an explanation from Moscow.
"All countries in the world need to work together to prevent tragedies like this. But we also would like to know from the Russian authorities how this tragedy could have happened."
The comments came after around 100 were killed and over 550 injured as crack troops stormed a school in southern Russia, freeing children and adults held hostage for almost three days by militants demanding independence for Chechnya.
Earlier in the day Bot called the denouement of the hostage crisis in the town of Beslan a "deep human tragedy" and said it appeared that authorities "considered very carefully this situation before deciding to take this action."
Speaking following afternoon talks, he added that "as figures are coming in it turns out that the drama is even greater than I thought."
He notably said that "perhaps at a later date" European leaders could discuss "with our Russian friends" the possibility of creating a joint anti-terrorism force.
"We should also eventually look into what has happened and discuss ... measures that can be taken to prevent such situations from occurring," he added.
