Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-11-19-Speech-3-149"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20031119.6.3-149"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:translated text |
".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the EU-Russian Federation Summit has been one of the most important events to be held during the Italian Presidency in the field of the Union’s relations with third countries because of the strategic significance of relations between the European Union and Russia. Russia, too, attaches great importance to the Summit. Initially created as a forum for political dialogue, over the course of the years the Summit has become an occasion for both parties to review and revitalise at the highest level the entire spectrum of their cooperation.
In constant association with the Commission and the Secretariat, the Italian Presidency put a great deal of effort into the preparations for this event. It was discussed on 28 October at the meeting of the European Union Troika with the Russian Foreign Minister, Igor Ivanov, as well as at a number of meetings of senior officials of the Italian Presidency and the Russian Federation. It was necessary, in particular, to overcome a twofold difficulty. This consisted, on the one hand, of the Russians’ high expectations of a leap forward in their relations with the European Union, and, on the other, of the more rigid position adopted by the majority of Member States with regard to what they see as Moscow’s inadequate commitment to giving practical effect to the political pledges it has made.
Precisely because of its joint nature, being the result of a compromise, the Joint Declaration issued at the end of the Summit was achieved only after long, hard negotiations between the Russian Federation, on the one hand, and the Presidency, the Commission and the Secretariat on the other. It thus represents the reconciliation of conflicting demands and is a sensitive compromise between the demands of many of the Member States, which had wanted explicit reference to be made to all the controversial issues, and the desire of the Russians for a very pared-down Declaration limited to highlighting the positive aspects of EU-Russia cooperation.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, before examining the individual elements of the Summit, I should like to make it clear that all the issues on the agenda were dealt with fully in our talks with President Putin. They included the situation in Chechnya, the failure to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, the issue of Moldova and Transnistria and the implications of the judicial proceedings involving the
group.
As regards Chechnya, in particular, I should like to point out that not only was the issue raised at the initiative of the President-in-Office of the Council of the European Union, but ample debating time was dedicated to the subject during the plenary session. If there is no mention of this issue in the final Summit Declaration, this is owing to the considerations that I mentioned a short while ago to the effect that this was a proposal on which agreement had to be reached, and thus the fruit of a brokerage exercise. The Commission, the High Representative, Mr Solana, and the Presidency all agreed that the reference made to the joint declaration was acceptable as an outcome. These, therefore, are the reasons.
In respect of domestic developments in Russia, President Putin described the internal political and economic situation with reference also to the parliamentary elections next December and the presidential elections the following March, and in the light of the events connected with the
affair. He reiterated Russia’s clear intention to carry on with its privatisation programme and continue with the process of creating an independent judicial system and strengthening the public institutions. We replied that, although we had absolutely no intention of interfering in Russian domestic affairs, we would continue to follow the
affair very closely, and that we were confident that the Russian judiciary would act with complete transparency and in accordance with the law and would give the international community and the business community its full assurance that the ongoing reforms would not be obstructed, and that Russia would continue to follow the principles of the market economy.
In response to a specific request from the Presidency, President Putin illustrated the efforts that Moscow is making to begin political and institutional reconstruction in Chechnya by means of a referendum, amnesty and elections, and invited European representatives to visit the region. For our part, we expressed our solidarity with Russia in the fight against Chechen terrorism as well as our support for a constitutional reform that encompasses ever-wider sections of the Chechen population that are not compromised by terrorism. We renewed our appeal for all possible efforts to be made to speed up the release of Arjan Erkel, the
representative who was abducted in the Caucasus in August 2002, and expressed the hope that an ECHO office would be opened in the area. President Putin suggested that one could be opened in Chechnya itself, and that he would personally guarantee its security.
As regards the common economic space, the Summit sanctioned an agreed strategy that, we hope, will increase the level of interdependence between our economies in the coming years. We now have to decide upon the appropriate institutional forum for the operational follow-up, perhaps extending the mandate of the relevant High Level Group. The Summit was supportive of Russian aspirations for WTO membership by the end of 2004, but remains well aware of known difficulties in areas such as energy, air transport issues and insurance, which remain outstanding items on the EU-Russia agenda.
Dialogue on energy will continue, with the EU continuing to encourage progress in the Russian process of reforming the sector, in spite of the difficulties that Russia has in meeting the demands of Europe and the WTO, especially in relation to domestic prices and the privatisation of the energy sector. The European Union also insisted strongly on the need for Russia to ratify the Kyoto Protocol with all speed and on our expectation that Russia would make a determined effort to increase cooperation in matters of protection of the marine environment.
As regards the common space of freedom, security and justice, I should like to draw your attention to the signing of an agreement between Europol and the Russian Ministry of the Interior. This is a significant confirmation of our joint determination to press ahead with implementation of the plan of action against organised crime. In the same context, we were also pleased to record the start of talks at a technical level on issues relating to the liberalisation of visa requirements, and took note of the willingness of both sides to introduce measures to relax the requirements for the issuing of visas under the existing legislation. We also underscored the importance of rapid conclusion of the Readmission Agreement.
The meeting gave the European Union the opportunity to confirm its conviction that internal security is complementary to justice and respect for human rights, and that the strategic partnership between the European Union and Russia continues to be based on shared values such as democracy, the rule of law, human rights and freedom of expression. As regards the common space of external security, the joint declaration on cooperation in the area of crisis management was a clear sign of the willingness of the European Union and the Russian Federation to work together in this area of vital interest for Europe. I believe that this, too, should be recorded as one of the successes of the Rome Summit as regards the creation of a common space of external security. The Russian proposal for closer cooperation in the field of civil protection and the management of natural disasters will be considered in more detail and converted at the earliest possible date into agreements that will enable the Union and Russia to cooperate and strengthen their joint response to future emergencies. An initial step may be the establishment of direct contact between the competent bodies in Brussels and Moscow. The possibility of similar cooperation is also to be explored by the relevant multilateral bodies in relation to weapons of mass destruction.
The Villa Madama Summit gave the go-ahead for the practical implementation of the St Petersburg Declaration, where it lays down that European Union-Russia relations must be built around common spaces, to be created in the medium to long term within the framework of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement currently in force. The main aim was to make further progress in respect of all the common spaces by making the best use of existing structures and tools with a view to enhancing strategic relations and driving forward the process of integrating the Russian Federation into Europe.
As regards the common space of research and education, the Summit opened a new chapter in bilateral cooperation, which had been bolstered by the Russian Federation’s joining the Bologna Process, an intergovernmental cooperation mechanism promoting agreements in the field of the mutual recognition of academic qualifications and the harmonisation of university curricula. The Bologna Process paves the way for forms of effective intergovernmental cooperation in the field of the harmonisation of academic qualifications, which is an initial step towards the creation of a common space for university teaching. Moreover, the renewal of the Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation will make it possible for the Russians to take part in European research programmes.
Lastly, the question was explored of the functioning of the Permanent Partnership Council, with the aim of finding a solution based on the values of efficiency and flexibility that reconciles Russia’s desire for discussions of greater depth and reach in matters of common interest with the principle that the decision-making processes of the EU must remain autonomous. I hope that, by building on this foundation, we shall soon be able to reach an agreement that will make it possible to put the Permanent Partnership Council into operation.
As regards international issues, in addition to the debates imposed by current events in Iran, Iraq and the Middle East, on which the two sides are in broad agreement and essentially share the same goals, we also raised the question of the situation in Moldova, in particular, on account of a number of imminent deadlines relating to the Transnistria crisis in which the Russian Federation has a crucial role to play: the definitive withdrawal of Russian military hardware by 31 December, and progress in the five-way negotiations and in the work of the Constitutional Committee responsible for drafting a new model of state for Moldova. We believe that Russia should honour its commitment punctually, without any further postponements. Russia confirmed the undertaking to withdraw, but observed that, since the negotiations for the resolution of the Transnistria crisis had made little headway, further endeavours would be needed.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, in conclusion, I think I can say that the Rome Summit was not altogether easy but it was an important moment in the consolidation of our overall relationship with the Russian Federation and enabled us to make progress in the creation of the four common spaces. It was certainly a valuable occasion for an extensive exchange of views on international issues.
For the European Union, the Summit provided an opportunity to remind Moscow of our common commitment to tackling the current challenges and to discharging in a coordinated manner our shared responsibility for the environmental protection of the continent, and of the need to share information and work together to resolve the problems caused by climate change. The meeting allowed the European Union and the Russian Federation to look at current global issues, including crisis situations and what are known as the frozen conflicts in the region.
The Italian Presidency, however, was concerned with keeping the main emphasis on the creation of the four common spaces and on the positive aspects of EU-Russia cooperation, and therefore focused on the major tangible achievements of the Summit, in particular a Joint Declaration on the CFSP and on cooperation in crisis management, the signing of the Agreement between Europol and the Russian Federation, the start of talks on the visa-free regime and the renewal of the Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation.
The Russians endorsed the approach and the emphasis given to the creation of the four spaces. The Summit, which took place at a sensitive moment in Russian domestic politics – parliamentary elections will be held next December and presidential elections in March 2004 – also afforded President Putin an opportunity to strengthen the ties drawing the European Union and the Russian Federation increasingly close together. To this end, President Putin reiterated the need to activate the Permanent Partnership Council, within which and within whose various formats representatives of key areas of EU-Russia cooperation will be able to exchange views and work together.
Addressing himself to strategic considerations, President Putin expressed Moscow’s concerns at the short- and medium-term consequences of enlargement on both economic and trade relations and political relations between the Russian Federation and former Soviet Bloc countries – with particular reference to the Russian-speaking minorities in the Baltic states – in view of the extension of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement to the new Member States. In reply to President Putin, we made it quite clear that the extension of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement is an obligation with which the Russian Federation must comply within the timeframe laid down and is an essential condition for strengthening its relations with the 25-Member State Europe.
The Summit also looked at the state of progress of the talks for the Russian Federation’s future membership of the WTO which, despite significant unresolved issues, both sides hope will be achieved before the end of 2004.
Both the European and the Russian sides looked forward to the ending of current visa regulations, and noted with satisfaction that talks on the preliminaries for a visa-free system had begun and that the current visa regulations were to be relaxed immediately on a bilateral and, of course, reciprocal basis.
One of the key moments in the Summit was the ceremony of the signing of two agreements: the renewed Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation and the Europol-Russia Agreement on the exchange of strategic analyses and cooperation in police training, which is a tangible sign of the willingness of the Russian Federation to work alongside the European Union in the field of Justice and Home Affairs."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples