The European Union has learned with horror and indignation the news of the terrorist attack on the American headquarters in Dhahran, in which so many people lost their lives or were wounded, criminally carried out when Secretary of State Warren Christopher is engaged in a new, delicate peace mission in the region.

This attack is the latest in a wave of hostile and criminal acts perpetrated against those who serve in favour of peace in the Middle East.

In expressing its condolences to the relatives of the victims, the European Union wishes to reaffirm, as solemnly reiterated at the recent Florence European Council, its absolute condemnation of the scourge of terrorism and political violence and its continuing support in favour of stabilisation and peace­building in the Middle East.