Tunisia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Points to His Country’s Consistency and Moderation

By Delinda C. Hanley

U.S. First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton’s spring visit to Tunisia and Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s scheduled later visit to the U.S. “will confirm our traditional friendship and cooperation with the United States,” Tunisian Foreign Minister Said Ben Mustapha told the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. Tunisian successes in social progress and women’s rights are the focus of Mrs. Clinton’s visit with her daughter Chelsea. When President Ben Ali visits Washington, he will concentrate on political issues relating to peace and security and new realities in the Middle East.

Tunisia, long known for its moderation, has had a consistent and basically unchanged foreign policy for the past 40 years. Minister Ben Mustapha said, “We have set up clear policies respecting international law and U.N. Security Council decisions. After we put our domestic affairs in order and enjoyed reform and renewal we could also play a vital role in the international arena.”

With regard to the Middle East conflict, he said, Tunisia has played a unique role under the leadership of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. “Tunisia has credibility because we’ve always tried to find solutions to problems through dialogue. We always look for a political solution. Throughout the Middle East peace process, both parties came to Tunisia for advice because they know we are fully committed to peace,” the minister continued. “We are very sorry that, after all our efforts, the peace process has arrived at this point. But we are realistic; we will wait for the elections in Israel.”

When asked about Tunisia’s current relations with Israel, Ben Mustapha said, “We established relations with Israel three years ago but we told the Israelis that our agreement was linked to the peace process. However, since the present government took office, we noticed they were not very keen to continue. When we see progress again in the peace initiative, we will have no problem resuming the normalization process.”

Asked what steps Tunisia recommends to revitalize the peace process, Ben Mustapha said, “We think that the international community, and most especially the peace process sponsors, have a special responsibility toward both parties. The international community needs to send a clear message that all signed agreements and commitments must be respected and fully implemented. If the new Israeli government respects signed agreements with its peace partners, that will show they are ready to reconcile.”

Asked if he would advise President Arafat to declare a Palestinian state May 4, Ben Mustapha said Arafat hasn’t asked for Tunisia’s advice. He pointed out that Arafat is already the leader of the Palestinian state. He also said, “The Palestinians need help. Financially they are in a difficult situation. All of us have to continue to support the process and not abandon it. There is no alternative.”