Brussels, 06/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 6 July, the members of the European Parliament welcomed the global strategy for the foreign and security policy devised by the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini.
“The great priority in the strategy has to do with security, as our ambition is for a Defence Union. We are not there yet, but we are heading in the right direction”, said Sandra Kalniete (EPP, Latvia), rapporteur on 'the EU in a changing global environment - a more connected, contested and complex world', who contributed to the drafting of the strategy. On behalf of the S&D group, Knut Fleckenstein said that the strategy “marks out the right path”. He said that an additional commitment in favour of the defence of the citizens was a requirement, even though there is a difference of opinions. He added that political will and a clear timetable would be necessary to set the strategy in place effectively. Congratulating Mogherini on her report, Charles Tannock (ECR, UK) said that the CFSP and CSDP give a “major voice to Europe in an increasingly dangerous world”. Whilst stressing the role of NATO, as many of his colleagues did as well, Johannes van Baalen (ALDE, Netherlands), said that the EU should act when NATO could not and that there was therefore a need to invest in defence capabilities.
Other MEPs expressed a greater degree of criticism of the strategy. Whilst welcoming the presentation of a new strategy, Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens/EFA, Germany) said that it was not credible to want an autonomous strategy, adding that Europe taking NATO's place and taking responsibility for security on the continent bore no relation to reality. “I do not believe that that is what our citizens are looking for”, he added. Fabio Massimo Castaldo (EFDD, Italy) said that “the EU must be credible, reactive and united, which is virtually mission impossible given the instruments available to us”. He went on to say that there were differences of opinion between the member states on many foreign policy issues. “Can we really talk about a common foreign, security and defence policy? No!” he concluded. “A truly stronger Europe is a social Europe, and cannot be achieved through rearmament, even preventatively”, said Germany's Sabine Lösing, on behalf of the GUE/NGL.
For her own part, Mogherini tried to get everybody to agree by stating that a “dose of realism and a dose of ambition” were needed. She said that the strategy would make no sense unless it is translated into concrete actions. “The strategy opens up very clear paths for the future, which will be counted in months, but it will depend on the will of the world of politics to set the strategy in place”, she explained. She called for the support of the Parliament in the implementation of the strategy, adding that collective work would be needed to implement this. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)