Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-06-20-Speech-3-187"
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"en.20070620.21.3-187"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner, ladies and gentlemen, illicit arms trading and the irresponsible export-control policies of some states are fuelling conflicts worldwide, undermining respect for human rights and encouraging crime and terrorism. Moreover, they are hampering the sustainable economic development of entire regions.
Let me also pay particular tribute to the role of civil society, for non-governmental organisations, scientists and scholars and the media have played a significant part in persuading hesitant governments of the need for an arms-trade treaty. From the very start they have made valuable suggestions and contributions, and I urge non-governmental organisations to maintain their active involvement in this process.
The Presidency is pleased to note that the European Parliament has expressed itself on various occasions in favour of the conclusion of a global arms-trade treaty and that it is using its interparliamentary contacts for that purpose. I read the latest draft resolution with great interest and warmly welcome the persuasive proposals it contains. I very much hope that we can continue and intensify our vigorous dialogue with the European Parliament on this important issue too.
It is against this backdrop that the idea of enshrining binding principles for arms dealing in an international agreement was conceived a few years ago. The concept of an arms-trade treaty was born. The Member States of the European Union campaigned for such an agreement from the outset, and the current Presidency of the Council also attaches great importance to this process. At a meeting on 18 June the General Affairs and External Relations Council re-emphasised the importance of an arms-trade treaty.
I was very pleased that Mr Romeva i Rueda, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on the EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports, accepted the invitation to attend the informal seminar for the members of the Conventional Arms Exports Working Party COARM Group in Berlin at the beginning of January, where he explained in detail the views of the European Parliament on a global arms-trade treaty. The Presidency shares Mr Romeva’s view that such a treaty would serve the extremely important purpose of subjecting the global arms trade to legally binding and responsible rules.
An important step was taken with the adoption of resolution 61/89 by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 6 December 2006. The resolution asks the Secretary-General to seek the views of Member States of the United Nations and to appoint a group of experts by 2008. It will be the task of that group to assess the feasibility, scope and draft parameters of such a treaty. In the lead-up to the session of the General Assembly, numerous Member States of the EU were involved in the drafting of the resolution and in canvassing other states to approve it.
About 80 states, including all Member States of the EU, have so far answered the UN Secretary-General’s call. In a separate EU opinion submitted to the Secretary-General, the Presidency of the Council cited the EU Code of Conduct as a good example of international cooperation in the control of arms exports and made the case for an arms-trade treaty. Together with other EU Member States, the Presidency also continues to press for the submission of country papers. A large number of favourable opinions will be of paramount importance in demonstrating the strong worldwide support that exists for the project.
The success of such a treaty will be crucially dependent on whether it binds not only all the major arms exporters but also the countries that import arms. The United Nations is therefore the right forum for these negotiations.
Let me cite two examples of issues to which the group of experts must devote particular attention in order to pave the way for an effective treaty. First of all, the scope of the treaty must be spelled out in detail. To this end a separate checklist will be necessary. This must not be confined to the categories used in the UN arms register but must also apply to materiel such as small and light arms, ammunition and man-portable air-defence systems (MANPADS). Manufacturing equipment and technology should also be included in an appropriate form.
Secondly, the treaty must contain a comprehensive catalogue of criteria to be applied when decisions are taken on arms exports. Among these criteria are compliance with arms embargos, respect for human rights in the country of destination, preservation of regional stability, prevention of internal or regional conflicts, promotion of sustainable development and prevention of any undesirable redirection of the goods.
Numerous regional organisations around the world have already been examining these issues. The European Union’s Code of Conduct on Arms Exports is the most fully developed international instrument for the control of arms exports. Thanks to its experience with the Code of Conduct, the European Union can make a special contribution to the discussion of these issues. At the same time, however, it must avoid creating the impression that it seeks to impose the EU Code of Conduct on other Members of the United Nations. The fact is that support for this project in all parts of the world is remarkably strong at the present time. Nevertheless, an important role in this process devolves on the European Union, to which several major exporting nations belong."@en1
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