BRUSSELS, Jan. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- The European Union (EU) on Sunday welcomed an earlier decision by the Israeli cabinet to allow voting by Palestinians in East Jerusalem.

    The EU expects Israel to facilitate electoral operations, including movement of candidates and voting officials, as well as of local and international observers, said EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) Javier Solana.

    "Elections are an essential step in the building of a democratic Palestinian state, in the perspective of the two state solution," he said in a statement.

    The election of Palestinian Legislative Council is scheduled to take place on January 25.

    The EU has provided technical and financial assistance to Palestinian elections. With an additional 1.4 million euro (about 1.7 million U.S. dollars) recently granted to the Palestinian central elections commission, total EU contribution amounts now to 18.5 million euros (about 22 million U.S. dollars). Enditem