DURBAN, South Africa – A European Union official says all-night talks at the U.N. racism Conference on forging a draft final resolution on the Mideast situation have broken down without agreement.
EU Presidency spokesman Koen Vervaeke said early Thursday that negotiators in Durban, South Africa, failed to agree on the host country’s proposed draft. He said the delegates have asked South Africa to draft a second compromise resolution.
The European Union and Arab delegates are at odds over Arab demands that Israel be branded racist for its treatment of Palestinians. On Wednesday, French officials said the European Union will walk out of the meeting if any country is singled out for allegedly racist practices.
The U.S. and Israeli delegations left the conference Monday because of anti-Israel language in earlier draft resolutions. Arab leaders say a final declaration that does not criticize Israel will be meaningless. The conference ends Friday.
