Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-01-30-Speech-3-068"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20080130.17.3-068"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Thank you, Mr President, for giving me the floor in this important debate which we are about to begin.
As you know, on Sunday there was an important meeting of the Arab League where all the issues were raised and efforts were made to draw up a formula for a solution: a formula which is not too far removed from the one Minister Fayad put to the European Council a number of weeks ago and which he reiterated on Sunday at the Arab League Summit or the Ministerial meeting of the Arab League: a method must be sought of recovering control of the borders so that the Palestinian Authority can have responsibility for them.
If this were to happen then in my opinion the European Union should raise the issue of Rafah again exactly as we did in 2005.
As you know, we do not now have a physical presence there; we are available for deployment as soon as we are called upon but currently have no presence there; we have not been present on the border since Gaza came under the control of Hamas, because we were not given permission to be.
I believe that what we would have to do would be to operate in accordance with the debate in the European Council on Monday and with the Council Resolutions, as I believe that Monday’s resolutions are very good and have provided a sense of direction which has been welcomed by all parties: Egypt, the Palestinians and Israel.
Therefore I believe we are on the right road. What we must do is work out how to ensure that the road we are setting out on in accordance with the Council resolutions can become a reality quickly.
The human suffering being experienced is terrible: so is the human suffering in southern Israel which also comes under fire from rockets launched from northern Gaza, towards their own people, a factor which in point of fact make stability impossible.
If we were to draw up a package covering all these matters, including the liberation of Al-Haram ash-Sharif, which must be included if our aim is to stabilise the situation, we could perhaps work together, and this is something I would very much like to do again, to resolve the situation.
As I said, I am in constant contact with the most important players. I shall travel to Egypt as soon as the working sessions under way between the Palestinians and Egyptians, which started today, have finished. Tomorrow or the day after I shall be there so that I can take part too and outline the contribution which we in the European Union would be able to make.
I honestly believe that the best solution would be to return to a more all-round situation in which the Palestinian Authority had control of borders and there was free movement of goods and people; not only for humanitarian aid but also for economic development and trade, which are necessary in order for genuine progress to be made.
Ladies and gentlemen, I believe that we are facing a very difficult situation because, as I said at the beginning, everything in the Middle East is bound up with everything else.
Mr President, we are opening a debate on tragic events which have unfolded over recent weeks and days: the issue of Gaza, the issue of the borders between Gaza and Egypt and the border crossing points between Gaza and Israel.
If we cannot make progress towards resolving the Gaza issue then the peace process will also be in difficulties. Therefore there is a great responsibility on our shoulders; please be aware of what is ahead of us, and aware that we, the Commissioner and I, are going to do everything possible to dedicate the time left to us in these few weeks to see if we can help find a solution on behalf of the European Union.
Mr President, I do not have anything much further to add except to express my wish to help achieve that end and to have the support of the Members of this House in achieving it.
The outcome witnessed by us in recent days is tragic: there has been a very sharp deterioration in the humanitarian situation and even the security situation has worsened considerably.
I believe that today’s debate should be a debate on how we can contribute to resolving problems.
We have had many debates in this Chamber on the problems of the past, and I believe that today we should see if we in the European Union are able to contribute to resolving this major issue (because it will also have an impact on the Annapolis Conference and the peace process).
I would like to point out once again that we, the European Union, have been consistent in calling for the border crossings to be opened and for there to be free movement of people and goods, subject to security guarantees, not only goods for humanitarian aid purposes, but goods which may assist in the economic development of the region, more specifically, the West Bank and Gaza.
If those three basic elements - political development, economic development and changes in the situation on the ground – are lacking, it will be very difficult for us to move forward. Progress in these three fields must be made and that progress must be made in all three at the same time.
What can we Europeans do?
Since the emergence of this new situation we have been in constant contact with the key players."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples