The EU's relationship with Turkey will be the key dossier of the European Parliament's plenary session, which opens in Strasbourg this Monday 21 November. On Thursday, the MEPs will vote on a resolution initiated by the S&D Group, calling for a temporary freeze on accession negotiations. The resolution, which has the backing of the main groups, is expected to be adopted. According to the negotiation framework between the EU and Turkey, however, only the Council can make the decision to suspend these talks.
Before they are called upon to vote, the MEPs will have the opportunity to debate the situation with Federica Mogherini, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, on Tuesday afternoon. The debate will come in a very particular context for the MEPs, as the president of the Parliament cancelled an official visit of the chair of the foreign affairs committee, Elmar Brok (EPP, Germany) and the rapporteur on Turkey, Kati Piri (S&D, Netherlands). The Turkish delegation opposed Piri's attendance. According to the EPP Group, the main aim is to send Turkey a strong message: if it continues on the road of repression, it will distance itself from the EU. Most of the groups stressed, however, that this should not be a warning to the population, but to the government.
Another resolution, this time initiated by the Greens/EFA Group, is unlikely to be adopted, as it does not have the support of the larger groups. This resolution aims to refer the trade deal with Canada (CETA) to the Court of Justice to verify its compliance with European law. Some groups do not seem to have read the opinion of the legal services of the Parliament, an EPP spokesperson joked. The opinion has been read, but there are still some doubts, the Greens' spokesperson retorted.
Also to be put to the vote is a resolution calling on the countries of Europe to respond to the worsening security situation in and around Europe, by helping its armed forces to work together, in the first stage of a move towards creating a common defence policy. The resolution also lays down a defence expenditure target of 2% of GDP for the European countries.
As regards legislative matters, the MEPs will vote on the inter-institutional agreement reached under the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU for more ambitious national ceilings for emissions of six key pollutants, including NOx, particles and sulphur dioxide.
In the economic field, the MEPs will have the opportunity of a debate with the president of the ECB, Mario Draghi, on the low growth in the eurozone, low inflation rates and a lack of investment. A resolution will also be voted upon on Tuesday.
The vice-president of the Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, will attend the plenary to present the Commission's priorities for economic dossiers in 2017, along with conclusions on coordinating the economic policies of the member states.
Lastly, the winner of the 10th Lux Prize will be announced by the president of the Parliament, Martin Schulz, on Wednesday. The films that have made the shortlist are "As I Open my Eyes" by Leyla Bouzid, "My Life as a Courgette" by Claude Barras and "Toni Erdmann" by Maren Ade. (Original version in French by Élodie Lamer)