Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-11-11-Speech-3-232"
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"Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Barrot, and all of you attending here today, the European Parliament firmly supports the abolition of the visa regime for all the countries of the Western Balkans. That is also the core idea that has guided us throughout the preparation of the report. I would like to express my compliments, in particular, to the shadow rapporteurs and members of Parliament, as without their support I would not have been able to achieve this result. Likewise, I would like to thank the Council and the Commission for their collaborative efforts which will form the firm bedrock of future cooperation in this area, especially once the Treaty of Lisbon has been ratified, as that will enable Parliament to adopt any necessary measures through the codecision procedure.
Let me just conclude: The European Union has a political responsibility to finalise the process of visa liberalisation and tomorrow, I expect Parliament’s broad support in this regard.
The citizens of the Western Balkans have been isolated by the visa regime for far too long. They have fewer rights today, as regards free travel, than they did in the days of the former Yugoslavia. What young people from the countries of the Western Balkans know about Europe, or America for that matter, today is what they learn from the internet and television. As I come from Slovenia, I can recall that it was actually the Slovene Presidency which initiated the process of visa regime liberalisation in early 2008, five years after the signing of the Thessaloniki Agenda, which guarantees an unambiguous European perspective for the population of the Western Balkans.
I am pleased to welcome the Commission’s proposal for the abolition of the visa requirement for Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, and I am particularly pleased to welcome Slovenia’s initiative, which has received strong support from the Member States and which allows the citizens of these countries to start travelling freely to the countries of the Schengen area from 19 December. 1 January 2010 would have entailed logistical difficulties, as the Christmas and New Year holiday period is exactly the time when many citizens of these countries want to travel to visit their relations living in the Member States.
The abolition of visas will make an enormous contribution to the process of regional cooperation and the overcoming of ethnic divisions and will also help to build cultural, social, economic and political bridges.
Ladies and gentlemen, the abolition of visas for the three countries I have mentioned is a very positive step in the right direction. However, I should point out that the countries which were omitted from the visa abolition framework should be allowed to join it as soon as possible or, rather, as soon as they are ready to do so. Naturally, I am talking about Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania. We cannot allow them to become ever more isolated, at a time when their neighbouring countries are enjoying the possibility of unlimited travel into the European Union.
Of course, they need to be prepared for visa abolition and I do not mean to suggest here that we need to lower our criteria. What we want to do is to send a clear message to the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania: We are waiting for you; you must urge your governments to fulfil their side of the bargain. We, on the other hand, will do everything in our power to ensure that there are no delays in decision making on the European Union’s side. I can safely say that this approach has met with the broad support of two committees, the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, which is my parent committee.
I would also add that, tomorrow after the vote, I will ask for the floor in order to deliver a special political statement, a common statement of Parliament and the Council, which strongly supports the abolition of the visa requirement for all the countries of the Western Balkans. In this statement, on which we shall vote separately tomorrow, we will both welcome 19 December, the date when the visa requirement will be abolished for Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, and call on the European Commission to prepare, as soon as possible, a proposal that the visa requirement for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania be abolished as soon as they have met the relevant criteria. We, on the other hand, undertake to deal with this proposal under an expedited procedure. I would like us to set a clear date for the abolition of the visa requirement for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania, although I am aware of the demanding nature of the procedures involved. I hope that the summer of 2010 will prove to be a realistic date for the abolition of the visa requirement for these two countries.
Just to conclude. We should not forget Kosovo, either, if we do not want it to become a black hole on the map ..."@en1
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