NOVEMBER 8th: A four hour flight to Moscow begins the most arduous mission of the presidency, a five day visit to Russia, Turkey and to four Middle East locations. This visit is in Troika format, an instrument employed by the EU for conducting its external relations. It provides continuity by bringing together the past, present and future presidencies.
Our journey begins in Moscow. As we arrive on a damp, cold evening, President Yeltsin is thankfully on the mend after his heart surgery. We are here to meet the Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Primakov, as part of the EU's bid to nurture friendship with Russia. With further eastward enlargement of the Union in the offing, our ties with the largest country in Europe have assumed a paramount importance for the future.
The Russians express an anxiety to avoid creating new divisions in Europe, a concern we share.
We discuss next month's Conference of the Organisation for Security and Co operation in Europe which will examine a new security model for the Europe of the 21st century. Our exchanges are conducted in a friendly and constructive atmosphere, which augurs well for our future relations, although no one underestimates the extent of the problems facing Russia as it proceeds with its complex transition process.
November 9th: The other Troika ministers, Holland's Hans van Mierlo, who takes over the presidency in January, and Italy's Lamberto Dini, make their way separately to the Middle East.
Before that, we have a further presidency engagement in Istanbul with Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister, Tansu Ciller, who is concerned that her country, having been first in the queue to join the Union, is now being leapfrogged by the Central and Eastern European applicants for membership.
On the EU side, there is a real desire to improve our ties with Turkey, one of our largest and most important neighbours. A Customs Union has been in place since January and we are looking to build on this, but it is impossible to ignore the very real complications that flow from the tensions between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean.
November 10th: Sunday begins in Damascus and ends in Gaza with stops in Jordan and Israel on the way. We are taken to see President Assad in his residence overlooking the city. The Syrians are an essential ingredient of Middle East peace. The EU wants to continue its dialogue with all the parties in the region.
Our purpose here is to gauge Syrian intentions and to urge them to play their part in launching negotiations with Israel. After the meeting, it's straight to the airport for a short flight to Amman and an afternoon meeting with Jordan's King Hussein.
Meanwhile, I learn that David Trimble has been launching verbal broadsides at me again. I am struck by the relative absence of verbal rancour among those we meet in this part of the world.
It is as if, despite the yawning gulf dividing Israel and its neighbours, they have learned that noisy rhetoric is pointless and are trying, at least, to learn the language of accommodation.
From Amman, we touch down at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv. On account of well publicised differences over the status of Jerusalem, and ensuing controversy about EU visits to the PLO headquarters in East Jerusalem, we are unable to meet Foreign Minister David Levy in Israel and will see him instead in Cairo on Tuesday.
The Israelis are there to escort us by road to Gaza. The border between Gaza and Israel has just been reopened to Palestinian workers and there are signs of people waiting for visas on the Palestinian side.
Meetings with Yasser Arafat are becoming a feature of this presidency. He is not very optimistic about the state of the peace process.
The Palestinians fear that Israel wishes merely to agree the withdrawal from the West Bank town of Hebron and then sit back and leave the remaining issues in the peace process untouched. They are enthusiastic about the role of the new EU envoy, Miguel Angel Moratinos, which they see as a tangible manifestation of European interest in their problem. We stay overnight in Gaza, becoming the first Troika team to do so.
November 11th: Heightened security surrounding this meeting of representatives from 70 countries makes Cairo seem even more congested than usual. We meet with President Hosni Mubarak and his Foreign Minister, Amr Moussa.
Much of their attention is focused on tomorrow's conference. They are keen to establish themselves as an economic powerhouse in the Middle East/North Africa region and the presence here of so many political and business leaders is highly significant for Egypt. Contrary to media speculation, they make it plain there will be no signing ceremony for any Israeli Palestinian agreement on Hebron.
As speculation mounts regarding his successor, I meet Warren Christopher in Cairo for what may be our last encounter before his retirement as Secretary of State. We have developed a good rapport during our meetings to discuss the Middle East. His is an extremely taxing position - like having an EU presidency all the time!
November 12th: There is an early morning meeting of visiting ministers. Israel's David Levy is delayed by Cairo's formidable rush hour traffic. We hold our Troika meeting with him before the conference opens. We have now seen all the Middle East's protagonists in the space of four days. My EU statement to the conference is a strong one which is spontaneously applauded. The depth of our commitment to the Middle East is appreciated.
November 14th: Another peace process - the Bosnian Peace Implementation Council - brings the presidency to Paris. This is a child of the Dayton accords and is intended to provide international support for their proper implementation. The business of rebuilding democratic political life in war torn Bosnia is fraught with difficulty, and very real tensions persist.
However, the three member presidency elected in September is up and running, and that's a start.