Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-02-26-Speech-4-042"
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"en.20040226.2.4-042"2
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"Mr President, as Mr Gahrton's report makes clear, this region is strategically key to us in the European Union; its stability and prosperity impacts upon us all. I share the concerns expressed by others in the debate about the stalemate in Nagorno-Karabakh. The December talks which took place in Scotland were a step forward; they were the first bilateral talks between the representatives of the two countries. We need to break the stalemate and use the OSCE network. This network is well placed to develop an approach that spans security and economic aspects and promotes regional cooperation and respect for human rights.
Widespread human rights violations are often the precursor to conflict. In Azerbaijan we know that almost 1000 people have been arrested since last year's elections. 100 remain in custody, despite the fact that the government now claims there are none. In Armenia there is alarm at the widespread problem of human trafficking. There are reports that many thousands of women and children have been sold into exploitation over recent years, in particular ending up in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The European Union must not ignore these human rights problems.
We also have just expectations of Turkey to act as a force of stability in the region, stimulate regional trade, enhance regional security cooperation and help revitalise the peace talks.
In relation to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline – due to pump a million barrels of oil a day from the Caspian to the Mediterranean – there are major concerns that the host government agreements do not take into account human rights considerations, and that the environmental and social impacts of the pipeline go against the equitable principles for sound projects.
As our colleague has already made clear, as a matter of urgency we need immediate investigation into claims that 15 000 joints already laid contain a faulty coating that would lead to seepage. A recently leaked report contained allegations that one of the consortium's consultants showed that the consortium, including BP, knew about these problems before laying the pipes and even before signing the agreements with Georgia. The funders, including the EBRD and the World Bank, who were providing USD 125 million each, were not aware of these concerns. I call on the Commission to ensure that there is a proper and exhaustive investigation into this problem."@en1
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