EU issues drawings statement

AP

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BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) – The European Union regrets that the cartoons of Prophet Muhammad were "considered offensive" by Muslims around the world, EU foreign ministers said Monday in their first joint statement on the issue.

Freedom of expression, however, "is a fundamental right and an essential element of a democratic discourse," the EU ministers said.

They "agreed on a common line of action" to help rebuild tattered ties with Muslim nations, said Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik, whose country holds the EU presidency and who led the drafting of the statement.

Many Muslim nations voiced anger against Denmark and other European countries, where the cartoons were published.

She hoped the declaration would allow the EU and Muslim nations to move on and heal damaged ties.

"There is a real effort to put some of the bitterness that has come along over the last weeks behind us, to concentrate on the next steps in the future, activities to reduce tensions and to become more aware on all sides of what unites us rather than divides us," Plassnik said.

"We will actively promote dialogue, mutual understanding and respect," she said, adding that the EU would aim to strengthen links in various international political and cultural organizations, through special programs with EU funds to help avoid a clash of civilizations.

The EU declaration was meant to unify the EU’s position on the cartoon crisis, which has driven a wedge not only between Europe and the Islamic world but also between EU governments over recent weeks, in wake of violent protests against European embassies in several Muslim nations.

Britain had called for the EU to show regret over the publication of the 12 cartoons, which were first published in a Danish newspaper last year. However, both the Dutch and Czech governments were opposed to apologizing for the cartoons’ publication, saying that would be detrimental to media freedoms.

Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller was happy with Monday’s declaration, which also expressed solidarity across the EU over several attacks against Danish embassies and boycotts against Danish products.

"It is time to move on," he told reporters.

The cartoons were first published in Danish newspaper Jyllands–Posten on September 30. One of them shows the prophet wearing a turban shaped like a bomb with a lit fuse. Islam widely holds that representations of Muhammad are banned for fear they could lead to idolatry.