EU's Joint Foreign Policy Exposed

Last week nine workers from the British Embassy in Tehran were taken hostage and this was the response from the EU:

EU foreign ministers demanded the release of the eight and said that intimidation of their [sic]diplomatic staff in Tehran would provoke a “strong and collective response”. Sources told The Times that if Britain was forced to close its embassy the 26 other EU states would probably follow suit.

(NB: There was initial uncertainty about the number of hostages.)

That, however, was when the rotating Presidency was held by the Czech Republic. On Wednesday the Swedes took over and the policy has undergone a not-so- subtle shift. Despite the fact that two hostages remain, the EU (led by calls from Germany & Italy) has adopted a 'wait-and-see' approach:

Confirming a split among the EU powers, Cecilia Malmstrom, the Swedish Europe Minister, told The Times: “We are listening, there are different views.”

So much for the 'one for all, and all for one' foreign policy approach of the EU. It's a mirage.
Times article 1
Times article 2
Common Foreign & Security Policy 1
Common Foreign & Security Policy 2

It's also interesting to note that everyone's favourite PM, who famously described himself as hailing from 'Northern Britain', isn't the only one unable to distinguish between Britain and England - Ahmed Khatami: “In this unrest, Britons have behaved very mischievously and it is fair to add the slogan of ‘Down with England’ to the slogan of ‘Down with USA’.” Muppet!

EU's Joint Foreign Policy Exposed