Wednesday 19 March 2003 EU Iraq meeting  | European Union foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels to prepare for what looks likely to be a difficult summit meeting of EU leaders later this week. This report from our Europe correspondent, Chris Morris. |
 Listen to the story There is a real sense of gloom and frustration in Brussels. The EU has been split asunder by the diplomatic divisions on Iraq. There is, said the external relations commissioner, Chris Patten, a lot of broken crockery on the floor, and we're going to have to work hard to put the pieces together again. The EU has done that before, many times, but as one senior official admitted, this is the most serious set of foreign policy differences we've ever had.What's worse is that it's the biggest and most important EU countries which are at daggers drawn. If the EU is to form any kind of coherent common foreign policy, it needs France and Britain singing from the same song sheet. But their disagreements about Iraq are well-documented and increasingly angry. The foreign ministers meeting here have found some common ground; they've agreed that the EU will provide emergency humanitarian aid to Iraq if war begins. But there's far less consensus on how much the EU might be willing to pay towards reconstruction in a post-war phase, now that it's clear that a conflict will not have United Nations approval. The political fallout of a war in Iraq will haunt Europe for some time. Chris Morris, BBC News, Brussels.
Listen to the words split asunder if something is split asunder, it is separated violently into two or more parts crockery plates, cups, saucers (an image suggesting that people have argued violently, throwing plates on the floor and smashing them) at daggers drawn being so hostile, like two enemies who are about to fight with knives coherent if something is coherent, it is clear and easy to understand singing from the same song sheet to be in complete agreement, as if singing the same song are well-documented have been published widely common ground areas of agreement consensus general agreement among a group of people in a post-war phase in the period after a war fallout here, disagreement; fallout is the radiation that affects an area after a nuclear explosion; if you fall out with someone, you have an argument and stop being friendly  Read more about this story | |  | | | SEARCH IN LEARNING ENGLISH | | | |
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