REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - Delegations from Indonesia and the European Union exchanged views on Middle East problems during a discussion at the Foreign Affairs Ministry office on Tuesday. The discussion was conducted on the sidelines of the visit by Chief Operating Officer of the European External Action Service, David O`Sullivan.

During the meeting, O`Sullivan said various programs, priorities  and support had been given by the European Union to democratic countries in the Middle East. "During the 2011 period until 2013 we have planned to give additional funds of 1 billion euro to support change in the Middle East," he said.

He noted that the European Union had earlier provided the Middle East with 5.7 billion euros, besides additional funds of 1 billion euros to strengthen the social life there.

Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Ministry`s Director General for Information and Public Diplomacy, Abdurrahman M. Fachir, said reducing political and economic concerns was a challenge for a country which has just gone through the process of establishing a democracy. "Indonesia has been successful in going through it and is now becoming a region with the largest economic growth in Southeast Asia," Abdurrahman claimed. He noted that poverty and injustice had led to turmoil in the Middle East.

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