Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-10-09-Speech-4-015"
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"en.20031009.1.4-015"2
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"Mr President, I should like to endorse the request made to the President by a previous speaker. It would be appropriate for condolences to be sent to the victims in Haifa. I would also ask for our condolences to be sent to the family of Jose Manuel Bernal Gomez, the Spanish official accredited in Baghdad. All terrorism is reprehensible, regardless of its origin.
This week the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence Policy adopted the report on the Middle East drawn up by Mr Menendez del Valle. I should like to say here and now, in advance of the vote at the next part-session, how much I welcome the effort made by all the political groups to agree on compromise amendments. If these are not changed in plenary, they will enable the text to be adopted with a substantial majority.
I am not sure how much bearing the document will have on the situation, though I am sure it will be less than we hope for. Nonetheless, I am quite sure European Parliament resolutions that do not enjoy the support of a substantial majority are meaningless.
Be that as it may, I would like to point out that the willingness of all the parliamentary groups to reach an agreement underlines the critical nature of the situation. Everyone has lost out during the three years of the Intifada. The only winners have been the extremists and they have taken the debate onto their own violent ground.
We certainly all agree that the quality of life of both Palestinians and Israelis is now worse than it was three years ago. Regardless of the method of comparison used, it is clear that both groups have lost out as regards social welfare, freedom and security.
As I see it, it is simplistic and therefore useless to attempt to apportion blame to individuals on one or other side. I believe all those involved share the blame for the present situation. I agree with Mrs Morgantini on this. Obviously, we each have different views and sensitivities regarding the conflict. I am sure, however, that we all agree on our dislike of walls such as the so-called security wall.
Undoubtedly, the Israeli Government does have a duty to defend its citizens against terrorism, but this is not the best way to do so. I believe we are all of one mind as regards condemnation of targeted killings. We are all alarmed too at the danger of the conflict spreading to neighbouring countries. Further, I believe we all agree that we would like to see in place a Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority who would be willing and able to act against terrorist organisations and put an end to them. Control of the security forces is required, obviously. Mr Abu Mazen was unsuccessful in this regard. We are as yet unsure how the government being formed by Mr Abu Ala will fare. His track record has earned him the support of the House.
I would ask honourable Members to take a moment to reflect on how they might be feeling if during the last three years terrorist attacks had become almost weekly events in their countries, and if these attacks had caused nearly 500 civilian victims. I therefore believe we must continue to back the Quartet. There is currently no alternative to the Road Map, and the European Union’s foreign policy needs to be supported. We must believe in ourselves. We would all prefer the Union’s foreign policy to have more resources at its disposal and enjoy greater visibility. We would also like it to be able to call on a joint diplomatic service. Nonetheless, the Union’s foreign policy does sometimes have more influence than we might think. This is particularly so in the case of the Middle East."@en1
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