Strasbourg, 08/10/2001 (Agence Europe) - In a resolution adopted in the context of the emergency debates, the European Parliament called on the EU to grant ECHO aid to the population of Uzbekistan, mainly for drinking water and food, so that it might face up to the appalling sanitary conditions prevailing there. The Parliament calls for the setting in place, with Union assistance, of a plan to fight against the spread of infectious diseases. The EP also considers that one of the priorities for this country, in the context of TACIS, should be to reduce the ecological deterioration of the Aral Sea, which would require respect of more binding measures on the part of oil companies.
The disastrous situation in Uzbekistan is due to natural causes and structural causes (bad management of water resources, and crops like rice and cotton that require large quantities of water), said Commissioner Poul Nielson. He noted that the Commission can provide aid but that a lasting solution can only come from long term reform.