Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-11-14-Speech-3-180"
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"en.20011114.8.3-180"2
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"Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, as you know, since the attacks on 11 September the international situation has entered a serious crisis. The purpose of my statement is to update you on the crisis and inform you of the initiatives that the Council has taken and will take further. I will therefore concentrate on the question of Afghanistan, which lies at the heart of the current crisis, after which I will also discuss the situation in the Middle East.
Obviously we cannot discuss the latest developments. Events have speeded up over the last few days with the capture of Mazar-I-Sharif and Kabul. These events show that the Taliban regime and the terrorist networks are gradually losing control of Afghanistan. They represent another step towards achieving the international coalition's objectives, namely to root out the terrorist networks.
During these crucial hours for Afghanistan's future, Mr Verhofstadt, the President-in-Office of the European Council, reiterated the Council's position yesterday, namely that there will be no stability in Afghanistan until a government can be established that is stable, legitimate, democratic and representative of all ethnic groups. This government will also have to adhere fully to the principles of human rights.
He also pointed out that the United Nations must play a key role in helping the Afghans to form a government. The European Union intends to support the United Nations' plans to that end and strongly urges the Northern Alliance to contribute unreservedly to these efforts. Moreover, the EU is prepared to help Afghanistan draw up and implement a vast reconstruction plan, a vital guarantee of a return to peace. This project in no way affects the priority given to emergency humanitarian aid, which the Afghan people now need more urgently than ever.
Finally, the President-in-Office of the European Council stressed the regional dimension of the Afghan issue. While the Afghans must, of course, themselves decide who will govern in the future, at the same time, all the other countries in the region will have to feel reassured by this new Afghan government. It is with this in mind that the President of the European Council, accompanied by the President of the Commission, will be visiting India and Pakistan on 23 and 24 November.
With regard to the Middle East, the European Union continues to be deeply concerned by the situation there. The violence and lack of trust between the different parties have prevented a resumption of the political dialogue that should begin with the implementation of the Tenet plan and the Mitchell report recommendations and should conclude with a just and lasting solution to the conflict, based on UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 and the principles set out in Madrid and Oslo.
As part of its strategy of relay diplomacy, the European Union, whether in the form of representatives of the Member States or of the Council, is always present on the ground. Thanks largely to the activities of Mr Solana, the High Representative, Mr Moratinos, the Special Envoy, and several European ministers, after many false starts, the Peres-Arafat meeting finally took place on 26 September. Unfortunately, the Israelis and the Palestinians did not succeed in this renewed attempt to call a ceasefire.
The Euromed Conference held in Brussels on 5 and 6 November was an opportunity for a wide-ranging exchange of views on the question of the stability and security of the Mediterranean region. It allowed the participants, amongst other things, to take a further step towards resuming a high-level dialogue that could, eventually, restore the trust that would be needed before negotiations on the final status could resume.
The President of the European Council and the President-in-Office of the Council will be heading for the Middle East again this week. They will be accompanied by the President of the Commission and by Mr Solana, the High Representative, whose important role is acknowledged by all the parties involved. This mission, which comes under the mandate the informal Council of Ghent entrusted to the Belgian Presidency, will offer an opportunity to remind the parties, once again, of the European Union's clear position on the goals the final negotiations must seek to achieve. These are, for the Palestinians, the constitution of a viable and democratic State and an end to the occupation of their territory; for the Israelis, the right to live in peace and security within internationally recognised borders.
The European Union will also point out that the quest for a global and lasting peace in the region means taking due account of the Israeli-Syrian and Israeli-Lebanese aspects of the conflict, which must be resolved on the basis of the same principles.
To conclude, as you can see, up to this point the European Union has not stinted its efforts to seek a rapprochement between the various points of view in the Middle East and it will continue along this track for as long as is necessary. Furthermore, the European Union continues to keep a very close watch over the development of the situation in Afghanistan and throughout the Central Asian region. As a member of the anti-terrorist coalition, it will continue its action to combat all forms of support for international terrorism.
With regard to Afghanistan, when the Council found itself faced with an emergency situation it reacted with determination and clarity. At its meetings of 21 September and 19 October, the European Council defined the framework of the European Union's action, which comprises two main elements. The first is solidarity with the United States and support for the actions taken as part of its legitimate defence and in compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1368, on the understanding that these actions must be targeted and endeavour to spare the civilian population. The second is to contribute to the anti-terrorist coalition formed under the aegis of the United Nations. In late September, the troika visited Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Egypt, where it had in fact met the Arab League leaders. Recently, it visited countries in Central Asia. The EU-Russia Summit of 3 October and the European Conference of 20 October were an opportunity to discuss the action to be taken at international level. The November meeting of the General Assembly will offer a further opportunity to reinforce this coalition.
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In concrete terms, the European Union's strategy towards Afghanistan follows five broad lines: attaching priority to emergency humanitarian aid, the central role of the UN, the quest for a just and lasting internal political settlement, the importance of a reconstruction plan for the country and, lastly, the need to give the stabilisation plan a regional dimension. It should be noted that the General Affairs Council of 17 October in Luxembourg and the informal summit of 19 October in Ghent clearly approved these five strategy lines.
With regard to emergency humanitarian aid, to date we have mobilised some EUR 320 million to deal with the crisis of the refugees and displaced people and with the effects of the famine. The main difficulty is access to the people in need, which requires full cooperation from Afghanistan's neighbouring states. The presidency has taken various steps to that end. With regard to the release and distribution of the aid, there is close cooperation between the Member States' cooperation agencies, ECHO and the various international humanitarian organisations, such as the HCR, the World Food Programme, the ICRC and the many NGOs.
The second strategy line is the central role of the UN. The European Union recognises the United Nations as the sole body with the international legitimacy to seek an internal political solution. The United Nations will also have a determining role to play in the implementation of a reconstruction plan for the country. The European Union therefore supports the UN Secretary-General and his representative for Afghanistan in their efforts. It is also most interested in the plan that has just been submitted by Mr Brahimi, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative. The Council is coordinating its efforts with a view to deciding how best it can contribute to the implementation of this plan.
On the question of an internal political settlement, the European Union believes it is important for the future Afghan authorities to be elected by the Afghans, for them to be representative of the ethnic groups on the ground and for them to respect and promote human rights, humanitarian rights and the rule of law in general; finally, they must refuse to cooperate in any way with terrorism and maintain harmonious relations with neighbouring states, thereby contributing to general stabilisation. For the time being, the European Union prefers not to openly advocate any one solution over another, leaving this to the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and to the Afghans themselves.
Regarding the reconstruction plan, in the light of internal political developments in Afghanistan, the European Union believes it is urgently necessary to draw up a reconstruction plan for the country. It wishes to be involved, together with many other actors, including the donor countries and international organisations. It also believes that this will be a long-term undertaking that will require a long-term commitment by those participating in the plan.
With regard to regional strategy, the European Union believes there can be no lasting peace in Afghanistan unless a regional approach is taken. In other words, Afghanistan's neighbours, together with certain other powers in the region, must be convinced that peace in Afghanistan will also be to their advantage. Legitimate account must also be taken of these states' security concerns, so as to avoid any further repetition of the foreign interference that has so often undermined Afghanistan and fuelled its internal conflicts.
The European Union regards the following countries and international organisations as having an essential role to play in any regional strategy with regard to the Afghan question: Pakistan, Iran, India, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, China, Russia and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference."@en1
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