Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-05-22-Speech-2-381"
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"en.20070522.30.2-381"2
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".
Mr President, for once, today, I would like to start with the points on which we are in agreement. It is an impertinence to have this debate held at a time such as this. The subject-matter really is far too important for that, and – as the report states with surprising clarity, very much so in paragraphs 41, 42 and 43, and also in many others – Parliament has no real control over the European Union’s military policy.
The Council really should get round to taking note of the very real and complete unity that prevails within this House on this point. We want parliament to monitor what is going on, and we also want it to be consulted on military decisions.
Let me now, though, for fear that I should ladle consensus sauce over this report, list the main points on which we disagree. As Mr Brok said earlier, it really is the constitutional treaty that is at the heart of all this, and, as the Commissioner said, it really will bring in real ‘advances’ in terms of military policy. It is for precisely that reason, among others, that we repudiate this constitutional treaty, and hope that such passages as Article I-41 (3) will no longer feature in the fundamental treaty that is now being planned, although I am not very confident on that score. It really does look as if we are going to end up with practically the same treaty, but no longer under the name of ‘Constitutional Treaty’; instead, it will be adopted by the various governments under another form.
Let me say something about certain points within this report. The centrality of structural cooperation is set out in very clear terms. Yes, it really is central – if you want the European Union to be a military power. We do not, and so we do not want this structured cooperation either, and there are very clear references to the Athena machinery whereby devious means are used to fund military actions by the European Union; for example, through what are termed ‘returns’ from the European Development Fund, and that we regard as a scandal. This sort of gamesmanship really does need to have a stop put to it, and the European Union really must not be allowed to become a military power."@en1
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