Madrid, 05/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - EU national parliaments and the European Parliament have called for better integration of the European arms policy in the European Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in a joint press release issued after the Fourth Conference of Presidents of EU Member States' parliaments' defence committees and the defence committees of the European Parliament and the WEU's Parliamentary Assembly that was held in Madrid on Monday and Tuesday. The deputies put forward a series of basic principles for the negotiations to translate the Laeken Declaration into facts, noting that co-operation has to be reinforced in the field of armaments in the form that Member States deem appropriate.
In line with the report adopted by the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee (see EUROPE of 25 January, p.4), the presidents of the defence committees called for a European Arms Agency to be set up and for European defence investment to be co-ordinated. They also suggested the publishing of guidelines to achieve maximum harmonisation of operations requirements and the definition of common investment criteria. It would also be a good idea, the MPs argued, to start working towards a common use of arms between several countries. Merger and industrial participation policy should avoid duplicating efforts, thereby increasing efficiency rather than eliminating competition. The EU arms policy in the framework of the CSDP has to be seen as an ally rather than an enemy, added the deputies. The presidents of the defence committees did not, however, comment on whether to include the war on terrorism in the tasks of the CSDP - as was again called for at the conference by the Spanish Defence Minister, Federico Trillo-Figueroa (see EUROPE of 2 February, p.10). The Spanish Defence Minister pointed out that the Presidency hoped that the Barcelona or Seville Summit would issue a Declaration on including the issue of terrorism in the second pillar.