European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Sunday welcomed the quick appointment of a new Tunisian prime minister after the resignation of Mohammed Ghannouchi, according to a EU news release.
"I take note of the decision to resign taken by Tunisian Prime Minister M. Ghannouchi. I commend his sense of responsibility, so as to avoid further violence," Ashton said, expressing hope that the move would prevent any further tension and allow the present transition phase to proceed in a peaceful and stable way, Xinhua reported.
In this context, Ashton welcomed the quick announcement by the Tunisian authorities of new Prime Minister Beji Caid-Essebsi.
Ashton said that she was encouraged that elections would take place before mid July. "It is important that a democratically elected government emerges from these elections to address the political, economic and social challenges faced by the country," she said, adding that the EU is assisting Tunisia at its request in the organization of the upcoming elections.
Ashton is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday. During her visit to Geneva, Ashton will hold discussions with a number of key international partners, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd.
They are expected to discuss the latest events in Libya and the wider North African and Middle East region, in particular the next steps following Saturday's adoption of a UN Security Council resolution on Libya.