Topolánek, Schwarzenberg meet Olmert to discuss Gaza crisis

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg met Israeli Premier Ehud Olmert on Sunday evening alongside other EU and Middle Eastern leaders to discuss the crisis in Gaza. Messrs Topolánek and Schwarzenberg represented the EU at a summit in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh earlier on Sunday, which rallied international support for the fragile truce called by Israel and Hamas, and which stepped up pressure on Israel to withdraw its troops from the Gaza Strip. The summit, organized by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, convened as Palestinian armed groups offered a one-week truce in response to the unilateral ceasefire declared by Israel overnight. The Czech delegation at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit said that it could organize a donor conference on behalf of the EU to raise funds for the desperate humanitarian needs of the 1.5 million population of Gaza.

On Sunday morning, the Czech EU presidency released a statement welcoming news of an Israeli ceasefire and urging Israeli forces to end their blockade of Gaza.