Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-11-06-Speech-3-098"
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"en.20021106.7.3-098"2
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".
Mr President, I shall try to be brief in order to comply with the time requirements that the Presidency has generously set for all speakers.
We also acknowledge, however, that there is a risk posed by weapons of mass destruction, and that this is not the problem of just one country. This is not a problem for the United States alone, but for every country in the world. We too have to fight against weapons of mass destruction. It is in our interest and is our obligation as civilised countries.
I have not spoken longer on the third issue – Chechnya – for two reasons: first, because the Presidency of the Council and the President of the Commission have already spoken on this matter at some length and I fully agree with everything that has been said. On Monday, as you all know, a summit will take place here, in Brussels, at which all of these issues will doubtless be addressed with President Putin. Therefore, Mr President, and I do not think that I am exceeding the time allotted to me, I should like once again to state my willingness to discuss these issues further, but to do so in order to attempt to find solutions to the extremely difficult problems that we face, to ensure that we are not always starting from first principles, with which we are already familiar and on which we are all agreed.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have been discussing three issues. I should like to emphasise once again that, where the Middle East is concerned, when we meet in Parliament, we should try not always to start from the beginning and instead work on the assumption that all of us gathered here basically believe that an entire people is suffering, that an entire people has had a very hard time for many years, that this problem must be resolved and that we must attempt to provide solutions. I believe that we are all agreed on the first principles, the general principles. What is it that we want? We want there to be, as soon as possible, two States that can live together, democratically, side by side with one another, in peace and prosperity. And this is the task to which we in the European Union must contribute.
I can tell you that we have reason to be optimistic. Or pessimistic. It is up to each individual to decide on what view to take. Personally, I should like at this point in time to be realistic and to try to work towards achieving specific and tangible results at this difficult juncture and I believe that this is what the European Union is doing. We do not need to make grand declarations. We have already done that. We now need to attempt to resolve the problems that exist.
We have pointed out, for example, that in Palestine an open and rich debate is taking place, which could bring an end to terrorism. Which could bring it to an end in intellectual terms and forever, if that is possible. The European Union is also making a very significant and effective contribution to this debate, and this has been acknowledged by everyone, amongst the Palestinians and amongst the most intelligent strata of Israeli society, who also understand the importance of this role. Let us therefore try to come up with not only declarations of principles, but concrete actions that will lead to a positive outcome.
Our Palestinian friends must undertake reforms, which they have not yet done to any sufficient degree and on this matter I must agree with my friend, Mr Morillon. Their efforts must continue. I would have liked to see a prime minister in the Palestinian Authority, but this has not been possible, perhaps because the actions of Mr Arafat, who has been holed up in the Mukata for all this time, and who has lost the energy that he had established to ensure that change could be initiated for a more open government, which would also have had a prime minister.
Where the Palestinians are concerned, then, we must ask them to continue to combat terrorism and also to continue to undertake reforms.
And where Israel is concerned, the most important thing that we can ask for at the moment is for it to lift its block of the territories and for people to be able to move around freely; for a journey between one town and another, which previously took half an hour, not to take Mr Solana eight hours. This is what is happening at the moment – the territories are effectively closed off. No economy, however much aid we give it, can survive unless its citizens enjoy freedom of movement. This is, therefore, an absolutely crucial element. Secondly, payments must be made. The Israelis must hand over the taxes that they collect so that the Palestinian Authority has a budget with which to see its actions through.
Let us therefore use the time remaining until the end of year, until elections are held, to try to establish conditions for a debate on peace and for peace, which there can be during the electoral campaign, and let us do everything within our power to ensure that the Quartet, of which we are an integral and fundamental part, continues to work ceaselessly in the forthcoming months, which will be so crucial.
I would like to say a couple of things about Iraq: the European Union has attempted to achieve many of the things that the majority of Europe’s citizens had in mind. What did we want to see? We wanted to see the weapons inspectors return to Iraq. We wanted this to be achieved under the auspices of the United Nations, and we also wanted there to be no automatic initiation of military action. Three things. These three things have been achieved. This entire debate has taken place to ensure that the observers can return. And they will be returning. This has been achieved under the auspices of the United Nations and is being discussed this very afternoon. It has also been achieved without the Security Council Resolution automatically allowing recourse to war, because it is a Resolution in two phases. We have therefore managed, in one way or another, and with the efforts of many countries, including many countries that are not Members of the European Union, to make progress along these lines."@en1
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