Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-04-24-Speech-3-053"
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"en.20020424.3.3-053"2
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"Mr President, here we are, taking part in the umpteenth debate on the situation in the Middle East; in actual fact, we are witnessing the European Union’s impotence. At Valencia, we attempted, at last, to give a sign that the Union is present, to make it clear that it is now time for action, that the time has passed for argument and declarations.
Europe should be making increasing efforts to bring peace to the Middle East, but so far it has failed in its task. The Middle East crisis is in danger of sparking off localised crises throughout the Mediterranean area and of breeding further terrorism, not least by providing conditions conducive to the recruitment of terrorists. Therefore, Europe must certainly adopt a position which gives it a strong, an increasingly strong, presence but which is also a position of neutrality between the two parties in conflict. I did not support the outcome of Parliament’s vote on the resolution in Strasbourg, for it was weighted against Israel rather than adopting a position of neutrality between the parties. The Palestinians have the right to an independent State but Israel’s right to security must be recognised too. Mr Arafat must stop the suicide bombers, who are all too often children, and Mr Sharon must withdraw his troops from the occupied territories with due regard for human rights.
What path, then, can we follow to give Europe a major role? First of all, we must set up a negotiating table involving the European Union, of course, the United States, Russia, the Arab League, the Palestinian Authority and Israel. Italy has declared its willingness to host a peace conference. Then, we must immediately set in motion a humanitarian aid programme and food aid for the Palestinian people and, clearly, even if Israel is against the idea, start to think seriously about sending an intervention force to separate the two parties in conflict until the situation has calmed down. Lastly, we must set in motion a Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of infrastructures in the tragically war-torn Palestinian territory.
We must prevent the Middle East crisis from sparking off a fresh wave of anti-Semitism in Europe. Our – quite legitimate – criticism of Israel must not – must never – cause us to overlook the attacks perpetrated in our Union on Jewish synagogues and cemeteries. In this context, we must remember what happened at the cemetery in Strasbourg. Woe betide us if we jeopardise the freedom of religious expression of our fellow citizens of the Jewish religion! That is why it is important not to leave room in politics for the extremist movements which raise their heads every now and again, as has happened in France and in Germany. That is why we must all genuinely strive to build a new Europe with a single foreign and security policy, an influential Europe which is the Europe of inclusiveness and subsidiarity. This Europe will win through, for the European citizens are on our side, on the side of peace and tolerance."@en1
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