The flight of President Ben Ali was taken by surprise to all foreign ministries, they did not expect a collapse so fast the Tunisian regime. Late in the afternoon, the Spanish government issued an "appeal for calm" and urged the new authorities to "promote national dialogue" and "convene a general election soon and with full guarantees." Only two hours earlier by a similar statement, the Spanish Foreign Ministry had welcomed the measures announced in extremis by Ben Ali, the dismissal of the government and early elections, in addition to a state of emergency - and had been convinced that marked "the appropriate line to restore normalcy." The sequence of statements revealed a lack of information about the real situation, so that the first diplomatic efforts were aimed at trying to clarify.In fact, the last note was addressed to "the authorities have provisionally assumed power" in Tunisia, without specifying who they are. Trinidad Jiménez Minister spoke with the new Spanish ambassador to Tunisia, Antonio Cosano, who announced his joining the post when the revolt began. Cosano himself called the situation "critical", told TVE, and explained that he had been through a barricade with your car in flames, while the consul had taken refuge in a basement with his family before the bomb blast " very close "to his home.
For now, however, Spain has decided to evacuate your neighborhood, composed of some 600 residents and 400 tourists, but have been advised that "extreme caution" and stay in their homes or hotels, while travel discouraged in this North African country. A proposal by Sweden, the EU permanent representatives discussed yesterday morning the situation in Tunisia, hours before the flight of the President.
The High Representative, Catherine Ashton, said at noon that Ben Ali's decision not to seek re-election created "an opportunity for a smooth transition." Events after the denied. Shortly after meeting the flight of former President Ben Ali, the U.S. declared that "the Tunisian people have the right to elect their leaders" and that Washington "will closely follow developments" in that country.
Earlier, the White House had issued a statement that "condemned the violence against civilians in Tunisia" and was appealing to the authorities of the country to bring up the promises made on Thursday night by Ben Ali, including "respect for human rights and very necessary process of political reform." While a plane landed in Paris with a daughter and a granddaughter of Ben Ali, President Nicolas Sarkozy said through a statement that "only dialogue can bring a lasting and democratic solution to the current crisis." The Elysee said that "France wants to appeasement and the end of violence" in Tunisia and showed little interest in hosting the ousted leader.
In turn, German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged the Tunisian authorities to proceed peacefully against the social conflicts in the country and offered the assistance of their government as an "interlocutor" in anything that might help resolve the situation. Tunisia's ambassador in Germany met with Germany Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle, to discuss developments at the request of German government.
Speaking to the press before it was known that Ben Ali had fled, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon appealed for dialogue to peacefully resolve the serious crisis affecting the North African country. "The political situation is evolving at great speed and all parties must do their utmost to establish a dialogue and solve problems peacefully, to avoid further loss of life and violence."
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