Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-04-04-Speech-3-142"
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"en.20010404.6.3-142"2
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"Mr President, I would like to make three comments in response to the debate.
The first has to do with the issue the President-in-Office of the Council has just addressed. Like most of you, I think that development results from an, at times very mysterious, alchemy, the ingredients of which are easy to name but whose mixture is difficult to achieve. Like Mr Deva and the President-in-Office, I think that peace is probably the decisive ingredient ahead of such elements as the fight against corruption. There are many others but I hope we can avoid giving the impression that the least-developed countries have a monopoly over such difficulties and troubles. I think we ourselves do not always come out unscathed.
Mrs Sandbæk, the ‘Everything but arms’ initiative is a concrete action for which we had to battle hard, with the complicity of our chairman and friend, Leif Pagrotski, to obtain a qualified majority. What would you have said had we failed in our attempt? These concrete decisions have been taken and are now going to be implemented.
Mrs Kinnock wanted to know which LDC countries in particular are likely to export arms. The list has not been finalised. I think that the conference on the LDCs will enable us to exert a bit of pressure. Chile and New Zealand have displayed positive tendencies. We are well aware that, at least at this stage, Japan will not fall into line as regards the totality of its imports, especially because of its rice problems. Nonetheless, as regards industrial rates, it has already taken measures which are in the right direction. Finally, the United States will have to review its system of generalised preferences this year and, thanks to the various lobbying methods at our disposal in Congress, we will see to it that, when it does, it will have our initiative engraved in its memory.
I would like to dispel any impression that we have in some way bought the agreement of least-developed countries so as to organise a round of commercial negotiations which is in our interest but not theirs. Such an impression is totally without foundation. In the first place, this round is of interest to LDCs, even to the extent that, between the law of the jungle of unregulated international exchange and a round of commercial negotiations which will establish new rules, their choice seems to be made. Secondly, it is a question of giving credence to our own position and, Mrs Maes, of showing that, within the framework of our general policy, we are capable, without any equivalent concession, of taking it upon ourselves to resolve internal political difficulties in order to move towards what we have to do.
My third and final comment has to do with access to medicines. This point was brought up by Mr Miranda, Mrs Boudjenah and Mr van den Berg. As I responded yesterday in this very House to a question by Mrs Carlotti on this subject, we have, within the Commission, put on the table a comprehensive action plan covering not only the problems of finance in terms of development aid and those of additional incentives for public research, but also problems relating to the commercial aspects associated with intellectual property and the availability of medicines. This general plan is now on the table. You are aware of it. It is available for you to read. It will be debated in the General Affairs Council on 14 May in sufficient time for the conclusions of this Council to be presented at the conference on LDCs which will take place at the end of May.
So you see that, from this standpoint, all of us, including the presidency which, as the President-in-Office has just pointed out, is making this a priority, have tried to ensure that a certain number of Commission proposals are transformed into action after they have passed before the Council and Parliament, so that we can look ahead to this conference at least with an easy conscience."@en1
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