By IRNA,
Berlin: European Union foreign policy supremo Catherine Ashton on Friday welcomed the resignation of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, saying it indicated that he had listened ‘to the voice of the Egyptian people.’
‘The EU respects president Mubarak’s decision today. By standing down, he has listened to the voices of the Egyptian people and has opened the way to faster and deeper reforms,’ Catherine Ashton said in a statement released in Brussels..
Ashton urged for an ‘accelerated’ transition ‘leading to a broad-based government which will respect the aspirations of, and deliver stability for, the Egyptian people.’
She reiterated the EU’s readiness to help ‘in any way it can’ to assist Egypt’s move towards achieving ‘deep democracy.’
Ashton had been harshly criticized for not openly supporting Egypt’s pro-democracy movement and refusing to call for Mubarak’s ouster.