(BRUSSELS) - The European Commission said Thursday that Mauritania's democratically-elected president and prime minister must be released by the new junta there as a precondition for any fresh elections.

"The current situation is unacceptable. A military coup of this nature is unacceptable against a democratically elected president," commission spokesman John Clancy told reporters in Brussels, hours after the junta promised to quickly hold new elections.

"We have taken note of what they said. These elections would have to fit in the framework of the constitution of that country," said Clancy.

"In this connection, the release of the democratically-elected president and prime minister is an essential precondition," he added.

Ousted Mauritanian president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was being held in the headquarters of the presidential guard, a security source said Thursday.

Abdallahi's whereabouts were unknown in the immediate aftermath of his arrest on Wednesday when the leader of the presidential guard, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, seized power with top army officers.

The EU spokesman stressed that "we are not suggesting we would like to see new elections take place" -- as they would ideally like to see the deposed government reinstated -- but merely dealing with the situation following the coup and the junta's announcement of fresh polls.

EU Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Louis Michel on Wednesday condemned the coup and said that it jeopardised EU cooperation and aid to the country.

"We want to avoid the situation where you pay money out, say over the coming months, into the coffers of the military junta," echoed Clancy.

The EU has pledged 156 million euros (242 million dollars) to the North African nations up to 2013.

According to a 2000 agreement the EU and Mauritania can summon each other for crisis talks if one party considers that the other has "failed to fulfil an obligation stemming from respect for ... democratic principles."

The EU spokesman said that this could happen but that the "the situation is currently very fluid and we are still assessing it".

Meanwhile European parliament president Hans-Gert Poettering joined in the condemnation of the coup.

"This violent overthrow of the ruling regime is unacceptable and completely disregards the sovereign electoral choice made by the people of Mauritania in favour of a democratically legitimated government," he said in a statement.

"I call on the perpetrators of the coup d'état to restore constitutional order immediately and unconditionally and to guarantee respect for basic rights."

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