Brussels, 20/05/2010 (Agence Europe) - With just a few weeks to go before the second summit of the Union for the Mediterranean (although it is still not certain it will be held in Barcelona on 7 June), the Parliament gives its support to the Euro-Mediterranean cooperation process. With the adoption on Thursday 20 May of the report by French Socialist Vincent Peillon, MEPs say they want to “make this meeting a success, with a view to setting up the UfM's institutions, implementing major projects”.
The report highlights the fact that “political tensions and regional conflicts in the Mediterranean basin must not hinder tangible progress towards multilateral cooperation in specific sectors” that will “help to develop a climate of trust conducive to pursuing common justice and security goals in a spirit of solidarity and peace”. MEPs also point to the limits of neighbourhood policy which, while giving preference to bilateral relations to the detriment of a comprehensive approach, has not allowed a contribution to be made to a process of integration and significant reforms in the region. They also call for means earmarked for the UfM in the EU financial perspectives for the period 2014-2020 to be considerably increased, and suggest the creation of a Euro-Mediterranean investment and development bank. They go on to stress the need for democratic control of the UfM structure through the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly (EMPA).
Compromises reached for drafting this report have not changed the substance of the report, the rapporteur stressed during the debate prior to voting. Peillon said “it is important to get it across that there are strategic things at stake in Europe”. The economic, demographic, geopolitical and socio-cultural stakes make it necessary for the two regions to work together to become an “area of peace and prosperity for 800 million inhabitants”, he hammered home. “We were unable to avoid tackling the question of conflict in the south but wanted to affirm that the UfM approach was the right way to contribute to resolving these conflicts”, through concrete action. He went on to urge heads of state and government to undertake to make the Barcelona summit a success, mainly in order to clarify the funding of projects in the six key sectors (civil protection, motorways of the sea and overland motorways, depollution of the Mediterranean, the Mediterranean solar plan, the initiative for developing business in the Mediterranean region, and the Euro-Mediterranean university).
Approving these points, the commissioner for enlargement and neighbourhood policy, Stefan Füle, also called for true cooperation in the southern region. Regional integration is an essential element for this highly dynamic area, he said, underlining that young people should be the focus of concerns (especially in terms of mobility). “Our efforts must be mainly aimed at the young”, the commissioner asserted.
Marielle De Sarnez (ALDE, France) said “it is more urgent than ever to relaunch the UfM” and the European Commission should be “more active”. Speaking on behalf of the EPP, Marietta Giannakou (Greek) welcomed the fact that the report focuses on a number of quantifiable objectives. She also stressed that the UfM should have a definite budget through the financial perspectives. The first to do so, she criticised the “surprising” absence of the Spanish presidency during the debate, which does not augur well for the next summit. Welcoming what he called a very concrete and precise report, Raimon Obiols (S&D, Spain) would have liked the same precision to apply to the UfM, as the latter has “problems when it comes to definition”. “The UfM is a very important project but does not develop at the speed one would like”, said Ivo Vajgl (ALDE, Slovenia). He also calls for focus to be on the future generations in order to face up to the political problems that the EU could help to resolve by putting in a greater effort.
While a visit to Palestinian territories by a parliamentary delegation is scheduled to take place next week, Malika Benarab-Attou (Greens/EFA, France) asked why EU aid was being prevented from reaching schools in the Gaza Strip. She mainly criticised the decision by the chairman of the foreign affairs committee not to take part in this visit which, she pointed out, was at the request of the Israeli authorities. “The chairman of our committee throws discredit onto the whole Parliament. …. He is not equal to the post he is appointed to”, she said, calling for the resignation of Gabriele Albertini (EPP, Italy), who chairs the AFET committee.
Aware that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, that in Western Sahara and in Northern Cyprus are all obstacles to smooth operation of UfM, Willy Meyer (GUE/NGL, Spain) calls for “greater firmness against all governments that do not abide by international law”. His colleague, Takis Hadjigeorgiou (GUE/NGL, Cyprus) also deplored that no concrete proposal had been put forward to seek to overcome these major political problems facing the region. He said they understood it was necessary to allow UfM to work, but said that closing one's eyes and pretending that nothing is happening in Gaza was unproductive.
“We must tackle these issues more directly”, he suggested. As the report underlines, “conflicts must not put a brake on sectoral development”, retorted Pier Antonio Panzeri (S&D, Italy), for whom the Barcelona secretariat should be able to work correctly and finance major projects. Dominique Baudis (EPP, France) said the UfM was a “chance for the development of our relations with the countries of the east and south of the Mediterranean basin” but that “we cannot neglect either the potential of the region or the perils that it may bring”. While the UfM is in an “impasse” with a political chapter in deadlock and an uncertain summit (“I would not be surprised if we learned in the next few days that the summit has been postponed indefinitely”, he said), “we cannot allow the United States to hold the monopoly of crisis management in this region, which is ours”, Baudis said. UfM is a “condition for our security and growth and remains the best instrument available to us”. (A.B./transl.jl)