Strasbourg, 07/07/2003 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday in Strasbourg with the adoption of a resolution by its development committee on the trade in children and the use of child soldiers, the European Parliament recalls that over 1.2 million children are each year said to be victims of this trade and that over 300,000 children under the age of 18 are currently enrolled in fighting units in over 30 countries. The Parliament calls on the Commission to develop a strategy to combat poverty in order to put an end to the trade in children. It considers that the fight against this trade and the use of child soldiers must be a political priority for the European Union, a priority that should be shown in an adequate financial allocation, with a budgetary line to be created in order to strengthen the effectiveness and readability of Union action in this field, as well as in the context of EDF (European Development Fund) and above all its regional financing programmes. The Commission and the Council are invited to implement a vast partnership with the international and regional organisations, including the African Union. This partnership could above all contribute to the creation of free civil registers in all the countries concerned in order to: (1) ensure children are protected against the risk of being sold, traded or forcibly recruited; and (2) facilitate their access to medical care, to social benefits and to schooling. The Parliament calls on the Commission and the Council to each name a high level representative for children's rights. It also calls on the EU and its Member State to take measures to ensure trade victims are protected, especially with short term visas, and to provide them with the necessary assistance.