President Yoweri Museveni has told a delegation from the European Union that visited him at State House in Entebbe that Uganda and the EU are not adversaries.
The relationship between the EU and Uganda has not been that so good and the relationship deteriorated after the just concluded 2021 elections in which Museveni was declared the winner.
The EU parliament recently advocated for sanctions against some Ugandan government officials and organisations believed to have participated in violation of human rights during the 2021 presidential elections.
In response, government asked EU to respect Uganda’s sovereignty.
On Thursday, the EU delegation led by Attilio Pacifici,Per Lindgarde of Sweden, William Carlos (Ireland), Rudi Veestraeten (Belgium), Jules Armand Ania Mbossou (France), Nicolaj Itejberg Peterson (Denmark), Massimiliano Mazzanti (Italy), Mathias Schauer (Germany), Karin Boven (Netherlands) and Dr Roswitha Kremser( Austria) paid a courtesy visit to President Museveni in Entebbe and discussed a number of issues.
Speaking to the envoys, Museveni said that both sides are not adversaries and should therefore work for the benefit of their people.
“We don’t see you as enemies, remove all the diversions and concentrate on the shared goals and help one another for the prosperity of our people,”Museveni said.
During the meeting that focused on relations between Uganda and the European Union, the President asked the envoys that both parties should always work for shared goals and people’s good but also urged them to always consult government and cautioned them against involvement in matters that they are not conversant with, something that could have “serious consequences”.
President Museveni, who reminded the envoys of the political history of Africa in general and Uganda in particular, also discussed a wide range of issues with his guests covering political, social and economic sectors.
“By involving yourselves in matters that you don’t understand, even if you do understand, you should not get involved because this kind of misconduct can lead to many serious consequences and suffering of the people like it happened in some African countries,” he said.
Museveni also promised to share security findings into the November 18 and 19 riots in which 54 people were killed while protesting against the arrest of National Unity Platform’s Robert Kyagulanyi.
Ambassador Per Lindgarde of Sweden expressed their readiness to continue supporting development programmes in Uganda.
The meeting was also attended by the Prime Minister Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda, Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa and other senior government officials.
The relationship between Uganda and the West has of late not been at its best with the latter accusing government of not respecting human rights.
However, on all occasions, government has accused foreign governments of meddling into Uganda’s sovereign affairs by backing opposition politicians and fueling protests.
Earlier this week, the head of the EU delegation in Uganda, Attilio Pacifici said some people are working around the clock to create a diplomatic standoff between government and the EU.
“Someone is creating problems between the European Union and the Government. There is a lot of false information circulating and this is spoiling our relationship that has existed for the last four years,” Pacifici said while meeting officials from the ruling NRM party on Wednesday.
The European Union is one of the country’s biggest development partners who fund a number of projects.
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