F. whereas on 12 February 2012 the Arab League decided to break all diplomatic cooperation with Syria, to support the Syrian opposition, and called for a UN and Arab League peacekeeping mission to be deployed in Syria; whereas on 22 January 2012 the Arab League decided to call on President Bashar al-Assad to hand over power to his deputy and asked for an immediate end to all human rights violations and attacks against those exercising their rights to freedom of expression; whereas the Arab League decided to seek UNSC support for a political solution;

4. Supports the recent decision to further extend the scope of EU sanctions to the ban of Syrian oil and other petroleum products to the EU to respond to the increasingly violent crackdown; calls however on the Council and on EU Member States to further step up sanctions on Syria by banning European companies investing in the Syrian energy sector, as EU Member States take about 95% of Syrian oil exports; reiterates, at the same time, its strong support for the diplomatic efforts of EU Member States in the UN Security Council aimed at finding adequate responses by the international community to the ...[+++]escalation of violence in Syria; underlines the call made by Syrian opponents for the sending of international observers to deter attacks against civilians;

However, in order to guarantee proper representation of staff from national diplomatic services in the EEAS, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission should be able to decide that for posts in function group AD, until 31 December 2011 or until staff from national diplomatic services account for one-third of total EEAS staff at AD level, whichever occurs earlier, priority may be given to candidates from nati ...[+++]onal diplomatic services of the Member States in case of substantially equal qualifications.

3. In order to guarantee adequate representation of staff from national diplomatic services in the EEAS, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission may decide that, by derogation from Article 98(1) of the Staff Regulations, priority may be given until 30 June 2013 for certain posts in function group AD in the EEAS to candidates from national diplomatic services of the Member States in case of substantially equal qualifications.

However, in order to guarantee proper representation of staff from national diplomatic services in the EEAS, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission should be able to decide that for posts in function group AD, until 30 June 2013, priority may be given to candidates from national diplomatic services of the Member States in case of substantially equal qualifications.

In addition to the specific rules and procedures referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 24 of the Treaty on European Union, the Conference underlines that the provisions covering the Common Foreign and Security Policy including in relation to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the External Action Service will not affect the existing legal basis, responsibilities, and powers of each Member State in relation to the formulation and conduct of its foreign policy, its national diplomatic service, relations ...[+++]with third countries and participation in international organisations, including a Member State's membership of the Security Council of the United Nations.