Declaration by the Presidency on

							        COU CIL OF
THE EUROPEA U IO                                                                         EN
                                                         Brussels, 18 August 2008
                                                         12454/1/08 REV 1(Presse 237)
                                                         P 102/08
                                                         (OR. fr)




       Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union
                               on Mauritania



The European Union renews in the strongest terms its condemnation of the coup which
took place in Mauritania on 6 August 2008. It considers the emergency measures taken by
the military leaders who seized power, measures confirmed by the Order of 11 August
2008, in particular that relieving the President of the Republic of his duties, to be
completely unlawful.

The European Union warns the military junta of the serious risk of the country's long-term
isolation in the international arena.

It urges the junta to restore the institutional framework that existed before 6 August and
calls on it to cooperate immediately with the international community to that end. It
renews its support for the efforts made along that path by the African Union in particular.

The European Union stands ready to contribute to a solution for the current institutional
crisis through dialogue.




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The Candidate Country Croatia* , the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association
Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and the
EFTA countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic
Area, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, align themselves with this declaration.

* Croatia continues to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.




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