US and EU agree target for Cuba row resolution

PRESIDENT Clinton has reached a private understanding with the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, to conclude agreement on the contentious Helms-Burton legislation during the Irish Presidency of the European Union.

This was confirmed by informed sources in Washington last night as Mr Bruton ended his official State visit to the US capital.

It is understood that the President signalled to the Taoiseach at their meeting at the White House on Monday that the good personal relations between the two governments provided a good chance of working out an agreement on Helms-Burton before the end of the year.

The EU and the US are locked in conflict on the principle of the legislation which would give extra-territorial application to US law on Cuba. Among other provisions, Helms-Burton would permit Americans to sue European and other foreign companies alleged to have benefited from investments or property confiscated from US interests during the Cuban revolution.

Meanwhile, at a dinner in his honour at the residence of the Irish Ambassador, Mr Dermot Gallagher, on Wednesday night, Mr Bruton outlined the agenda to be pursued in the strengthening of EU-US relations, which he described as a major priority of the Irish presidency. Two members of the US cabinet, Secretary of State for Commerce, Mr Mickey Kantor, and the Secretary of State for Education, Mr Richard Riley, were among the guest list.

The further implementation of the New Transatlantic Agenda (NTA) was the main focus of EU-US relations on this occasion, Mr Bruton stated. The EU presidency and the European Commission were actively working with the US administration to advance the action plan accompanying the NTA. A senior level group to oversee this work was due to meet in Washington later this month to review a wide range of issues, including ongoing efforts to conclude important bilateral agreements in several economic sectors and to enhance EU-US co-operation in combating drugs.

Turning to the Helms-Burton legislation, the Taoiseach stated that the EU shared the US objective of promoting democracy, economic reforms and human rights in Cuba. "It is clear, however, that while we share a common objective, we have so far been unable to agree on common methods. The EU considers that dialogue rather than confrontation offered the best chance for a peaceful transition to democracy, he continued.

On the United Nations, Mr Bruton stated the EU and the US were operating closely together on the need to revitalise the UN system and make it more effective in addressing threats to peace and security, and in meeting the humanitarian and development needs of poorer countries.

The EU had put forward a range of proposals with the aim of involving all regional groups and member states of the UN in the endeavour. In the financing area, it had made suggestions which focused on a new method for determining fair rates of contribution to the regular and peacekeeping budgets, proposals which involved a significant decrease in the proportion of peacekeeping costs to be borne by the US.

The EU favoured an enhancement of the UN's rapid reaction capacity, including the establishment of a rapidly-deployable headquarters to be situated in the UN Secretariat in New York, to ensure the effective co-ordination of a peacekeeping operation when it was being set up, Mr Bruton said.