CAIRO: European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso will head to Cairo on July 14 for talks with the country’s military rulers, the EU representative in Cairo said on Wednesday.
Barroso is also to meet Prime Minister Essam Sharaf, religious leaders and members of civil society, Ambassador Marc Franco told reporters.
He is due to give a speech at the Cairo Opera to discuss the "Arab Spring" and the "new partnership in the context of freedom and democracy," said Franco.
Barroso would also offer European help to monitor legislative elections scheduled for September, but Cairo would have to make a request first.
"Our offer for international observation is still on the table but this is not something that we can do uninvited," said Franco.
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, which took power when Mubarak was ousted, have vowed the September elections would be free and fair.
According to the council’s timetable, the elections will be followed by the drafting of a new constitution and then presidential elections will be set.
