海角大神

鈥� A daily summary of global reports on security issues.

The European Union's foreign policy chief has met with Egypt's ousted President Mohamed Morsi, her spokeswoman said early Tuesday via Twitter.

Catherine Ashton visited Mr. Morsi on Monday night for two hours of "in-depth" discussions. Ms. Ashton is believed to be the first person outside of Egypt to have seen Morsi since he was ousted July 3 and shuttled to an undisclosed location.

The meeting聽raises the possibility that the EU could play a major role in trying to curb the growing violence in Egypt, as Morsi鈥檚 Muslim Brotherhood demands his reinstatement. That would be a major coup for EU foreign policy, which many聽claim has faltered amid the biggest security issues in recent years.

As Europe鈥檚 chief diplomat, Ashton has tried to help arbitrate a solution between Egypt鈥檚 rulers and the Muslim Brotherhood. As Reuters reports, 鈥淎shton attempted to serve as a mediator earlier this year and is seen by both sides as an important neutral voice in a country where Washington is looked upon with suspicion.鈥�

Foreign governments are urgently seeking compromise between the two sides in the troubled country, which was profiled in this week鈥檚
海角大神 Science Monitor cover story. Morsi鈥檚 ousting is considered Egypt's worst political crisis since the 2011 revolution brought down Hosni Mubarak.

'Not going anywhere'

For now, compromise seems far off. Some 80 Brotherhood supporters were shot dead over the weekend in clashes with security forces, and the interim government has told them to immediately abandon protests. They have refused, and say they will continue to protest until Morsi is reinstated.

"It's very simple, we are not going anywhere," Brotherhood spokesman Gehad El-Haddad said, according to a separate Reuters report. "We are going to increase the protest."

They have called for more protests Tuesday. According to Ahram Online:

Earlier, a group of human rights activists and lawyers attempted to see Morsi, whose family says they haven鈥檛 communicated with him either, but those attempts faltered.聽"He is not a prisoner. He is kidnapped," said Negad Al Boraei, a human-rights lawyer and chairman of the Cairo-based United Group law firm, according to the Wall Street Journal. "Everybody knows that this is a political issue."

EU foreign policy

During Ashton鈥檚 visit to Egypt, which began Sunday, she met with General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the head of the army, as well as members of the interim government installed by the army, and with representatives of the Brotherhood's political wing. Before arriving in the country she said she would be calling for a "fully inclusive transition process, taking in all political groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood.鈥�

The US has voiced support for EU efforts. US State Department spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, told reporters: 鈥淲e fully support and appreciate her efforts to calm tensions, prevent further violence, bridge political divides and help lay the basis for a peaceful, inclusive process,鈥� The New York Times reports.

Whether the EU will be able to bring a solution to the table remains a question mark, amid an increasingly complicated political situation in Egypt, and the EU's own foreign policy聽challenges at home.

The聽BBC recently released a video on how the EU functions, and one part of that is the European External Action Service, headed by Ashton.

Indeed, the Serbia-Kosovo deal has been, thus far, the biggest success of the EEAS. But it鈥檚 been overshadowed by other weaknesses, experts say.

Over at the Carnegie Europe blog, experts recently responded to the question of whether EU foreign policy has improved this year. Rosa Balfour, Head of the Europe in the World Program at the European Policy Center, wrote:

But she added, 鈥淲hat difference does improved EU foreign policy make? Member states are split on Syria, where there is no hope that the EU will spearhead some kind of solution. The EU was unable to prevent democracy from deteriorating in Egypt, and seems quite uninfluential in shaping the outcome of the crisis there. In Eastern聽Europe, the EU has dithered so long that Russia has caught up on offering comprehensive policy packages that compete with the EU鈥檚 own聽proposals.鈥�

A recent report by Dutch experts was more stinging: "Differences in culture and interests between the European Commission, the EEAS and EU member states," the group concluded, "are frustrating the achievement of a shared ideology and a genuine EU foreign policy.鈥�

Opinions might shift if Ashton is able to prove an effective mediator in Egypt.