Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-12-17-Speech-5-055"
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"en.19991217.6.5-055"2
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"Mr President, were it not for the people of Tajikistan I would not be standing here today. During the First World War, in 1916, my grandfather was a prisoner of war working on the railways in what used to be Russia-Central Asia, and he has often told me that he was only able to survive these difficult years on account of the hospitality and helpfulness of the people of Tajikistan.
But this is not why I am so keen to support Tajikistan’s cause, rather, unlike Mr Blokland, I believe that it is an issue that is of direct concern to us. Tajikistan is situated in an area enclosed by China and Russia, which are at odds in this region, and by the Islamic world and the Caspian Sea, where there are immense deposits of raw materials.
In my view, this region represents the Balkans of the future, a Balkans in microcosm, and that is why it is in our vital interest, particularly as a number of nuclear powers are established there, to stabilise this region and prevent ethnic conflicts taking place there from having an impact on the entire world.
That is why I believe that we need to help Tajikistan on its difficult way ahead by providing it with a loan, but also with outright grants, it being clear, in this respect, that we will have to call upon the Member States as our own budget will not accommodate this.
Of course, we must demand democracy and the rule of law but, at the same time, we must not apply uncalled-for standards. For centuries, Tajikistan was subjected to colonial exploitation and for eighty years it was brutally suppressed by Soviet Communism. Today this small mountain race is making its way with difficulty and must not be made subject to European standards. We must apply the same standards that we apply to developing countries; after all, we have been supporting the countries of Africa on the road to democracy for decades now, and the situation there still leaves much to be desired.
We have only been supporting Tajikistan for a few years now. Therefore, whilst we must demand certain rules of the game, we must also be patient towards the people of Tajikistan, heavily promote the elections to take place in the spring and recognise that this is not just an act that will do honour to Europe, rather it is in Europe’s own best interests to bring peace to this region."@en1
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