On the 13th of January Dr Javier Solana, Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union (EU), visited Bam in Iran to pay tribute to the humanitarian workers in the earthquake-struck city, and to express the EU’s solidarity with the affected population.
During his visit he met representatives of many of the relief organisations, including Moustafa Osman, Islamic Relief’s Head of Emergency, and was given a tour of the NGO camp.
“The European Union will continue to show its solidarity to the Iranian people,” pledged Dr Solana at a press conference in Tehran.
Dr Solana, who is also EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, was in Iran for high level talks with President Mohamed Khatami and senior government figures to discuss ways of advancing EU-Iran relations.
The Secretary-General’s visit to the camp in Bam helped to encourage all those working hard to help relieve the suffering of the survivors of the Bam earthquake.