Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-05-14-Speech-3-149"
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"en.20030514.8.3-149"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the opportunity given to me today to refer to the relations between the European Union and Russia is exceptionally timely, given that the summit in St Petersburg, which will be held at the end of May, has given occasion both here and in Moscow for an integrated examination of the framework for cooperation between the two sides. Preparations for this summit were also an occasion for a more global approach to the question of cooperation with Russia and essentially demonstrate the common wish to strengthen our relations on the basis of common objectives, on the basis of a mutual effort to resolve problems and create new prospects.
Beyond the medium- and long-term prospects of our relations with Russia, we have also focused on achieving tangible results on a series of outstanding issues. A major issue that has dragged on in relations between the two sides, the signature of the Multilateral Nuclear Environment and Programme for Russia, has already been set for the 21 May in Stockholm.
Secondly, the problems with the application of the solution for the movement of people between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia have been overcome.
Thirdly, negotiations have started on the conclusion of an EU-Russia readmission agreement and we hope they will be completed quickly.
Fourthly, we are optimistic that the mechanism for resolving differences within the framework of the partnership and cooperation agreement will have been set up by the time the summit takes place.
Our efforts to persuade Russia to invite the ten new members of the Union to St Petersburg are also having positive results. Thus the summit is acquiring even greater symbolic importance and may contribute to a peaceful and secure Europe which confronts challenges with closer cooperation.
We also decided in our deliberations with Russia to link progress on matters of greater interest to Russia with corresponding progress on matters of greater interest to us, the ΕU, so that we arrive at specific results. Thus, we have focused our efforts on the environment, by which I mean Russia has to agree to ratify the Kyoto protocol, on nuclear safety, on issues of safety at sea and on issues of justice and home affairs, with the emphasis on progress with negotiations on the readmission agreement. Finally, I would point out the common interest in combating the threat of narcotics from Afghanistan and central Asia.
I should like to say a few words about Chechnya, to which we attach particular importance. First of all, I should like once again to express our disgust about the recent criminal terrorist bombings which cost the lives of dozens of people. There has been another such attack today. On the other hand, I want to welcome the statements by President Putin following the attack, in which he promised to continue efforts to resolve the problem by political means. We believe that political procedure and dialogue are the only way to achieve a lasting solution to the problem. We continue to take every opportunity to underline the need for respect for human rights and the need to punish those involved in violations of human rights and in violations of international humanitarian law. At the same time, we need to encourage Moscow to move towards the application of an integrated policy on Chechnya, the aim of which will be the establishment of peace, the consolidation of a climate of trust and the economic and social reconstruction of the area. In order to achieve this, we must examine the possibility of drawing up specific programmes that will aim to promote democracy, the rule of law, institutions and social recovery.
As far as the results of the March referendum are concerned, we note with satisfaction that, despite the particularly difficult situation, the ballot was held without any violent episodes being reported. We must point out that, despite any irregularities and organisational weaknesses there may have been, the vote in favour of the constitution would appear at first glance to be positive and may be seen as a first step by Moscow towards a political settlement in Chechnya. Finally, the presidency considers that the OSCE can provide valuable help to efforts by the Russian authorities in the area.
We heartily support the efforts by Holland which, in its capacity as chairmanship-in-office of the OSCE, is holding discussions with the Russian Government in connection with the
of a new OSCE mission in Chechnya. We welcome the results of the discussions so far, which appear to be paving the way for the presence of Holland there and we hope that the Organization will thus be able to start operating and make a positive contribution to efforts for peace and democracy in the area.
The basic parameter of our plan is the realisation that Russia is a strategic partner for the Union, its biggest and most important neighbour. At the same time, enlargement will increase the points of contact, the common interests and the common challenges even more. Despite the difficulties which it is encountering in its efforts to change to a market economy, Russia is still a country with huge potential. The current international climate has also reminded us once again of the importance of our strategic relations with Russia.
Of course, this image does not make us also forget its major weaknesses. As I just said, the Russian economy is still in a transitional stage. Its economy accounts for just one tenth of the volume of this economy, that is, of the Union of the 15; it absorbs just 4% of our exports, while the European Union absorbs 40% of its exports. Similarly the institutions of the market economy remain weak and the financial sector in particular is facing problems and its regulatory framework needs to be developed.
Finally, Russia has still not joined the World Trade Organisation. Its political system presents a similar picture. Despite significant progress in the field of stabilising democracy, there are still shortcomings in relation to human rights, especially in Chechnya, which I shall come back to, as well as problems of organised crime and corruption.
It is without doubt in the Union's interest to help Russia develop a stable, democratic, prosperous society by strengthening its ties to Europe. This is something we have achieved in other cases, using different types of tools, of course, than those which have to do with Russia. And although the means we use are different, essentially the objectives, in other words the dissemination of the Union's values to its surroundings, to its environment, both geographical and political, always constitute the basis of our policy. With this thought in mind, we took initiatives, as soon as we assumed the Presidency, for an initial evaluation of the adequacy of our framework for cooperation with Russia. As we know, relations with Russia are based, from the contractual point of view, on a partnership and cooperation agreement. This was signed in 1994 under the previous Greek Presidency. May I remind you that this is the type of agreement which the European Union has kept for all the countries of the former Soviet Union, with the exception of the Baltic States, which we recently welcomed as members of the ΕU. Consequently, apart from a few differences, the same type of agreement ties us to Russia as ties us to the countries of central Asia. This lack of proportion quickly became apparent, given that the partnership and cooperation agreement was unable to cover sufficient sectors, such as close cooperation on judicial matters and internal affairs, on foreign policy and defence matters, on the questions of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, combating terrorism and other matters. That was one of the main reasons why we adopted a common strategy with Russia in 1999. This cooperation was implemented in a series of ad hoc initiatives. I can mention by way of example the energy dialogue, the initiative to create a common European Economic Area, the action plan for cooperation on questions of justice and internal affairs, which do not, however, have a contractual legal basis.
Appraisals of the adequacy of the EU-Russia cooperation framework, as regards covering a broad range of relations, vary. Everyone acknowledges that the framework has, to a great extent, been overtaken by events and that this will become even more apparent in the future. On the other hand, neither the ΕU nor Russia appear to be ready to proceed with a radical reform of the framework, a reform that would also presuppose time-consuming procedures for new negotiation and ratification. In the face of this situation, the Presidency proposed that the work of the summit should focus exclusively on the future of our relations with Russia, approaching the matter at two levels, naturally with the St Petersburg summit, as the datum plane for taking decisions. The first level is to reform the cooperation structures with the objective of rationalisation and of securing tangible results on a regular basis and the second level is to examine the possibility of the summit's giving the political order to start up the procedure for processing ideas and strengthening the cooperation framework in the sectors in which this is needed.
At the first level for reforming cooperation structures, the procedure has already borne fruit with specific proposals to the Russian side. We hope that Russia will respond positively and that this will be reflected in the summit's decisions.
As far as the second level is concerned, there are some reservations between the partners about the extent to which it is advisable for us to start up the procedure for reforming our relations with Russia, at a time when the existing framework has not yet been fully applied. We believe that, in order for us to engage Russia in a procedure of gradual harmonisation with European standards, a balanced policy of incentives and preconditions is needed, which can also include in the incentives the prospect of the long-term upgrading of the cooperation framework in sectors in which we all know this is needed and in which everything shows that this will happen sooner or later, especially on second and third pillar issues.
We also believe that the St Petersburg summit, the first following enlargement and with the participation of all the new Member States, is the appropriate forum for taking this step."@en1
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