Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-02-01-Speech-3-024"
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"en.20060201.11.3-024"2
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".
None of this is new to me, because I have for many years been in agreement with what my friends Mr Solana and Mrs Ferrero-Waldner have been saying. The only point on which I disagree is the idea that resources are sufficient for the EU to be a player on the world stage, as Mr Solana put it, which is what our partners and the citizens are demanding. This is not the case. It is not the case either in terms of resources or in terms of organisation, and the right thing would be to think about how best to use the instruments provided for in the Treaty of Nice, in such a way that we can coordinate internal actions and organisation more effectively.
In order to address the lack of resources, we must establish priorities, and in this regard the support of the institutions is crucial. Furthermore, Parliament’s support, following prior consultation rather than notification after the fact, is crucial if consensus is to be reached. There is therefore no major difference between what we are hearing from the Council and the Commission regarding the guidelines. Yet not even great chefs, not even the very best chefs like Bocuse or Alain Ducas, are capable of making decent omelettes if they do not have enough eggs.
On the other hand, in addition to unity between the European institutions, it is nowadays crucial to guarantee strategic partnerships with the main partners, the most important of which is a transatlantic partnership, followed by strategic partnerships with Russia and China, and on the next level with India, Brazil, Indonesia and Pakistan. This aspect is vital in view of the international issues at stake, such as money laundering and drug-trafficking, but in order for it to become a reality, the resources must be there via the various strands.
Another question, Mr President, that Mrs Ferrero-Waldner briefly touched upon is that of immigration. The ageing population in the EU means that in the coming decades there will have to be a significant amount of immigration, from both the South and the East. We will have to monitor this situation, both actively and proactively, and will need domestic policies enabling us to host and integrate these immigrants in a suitable way, and to control our external borders more effectively, given that the enlargement altered the borders that were there until recently.
As for the most contentious issues in this debate, I wish to say that we see eye to eye on both Palestine and Iran. We must be cautious and prudent, but must also stick resolutely to our principles. Under no circumstances must we waver on the principles that have always guided us, and, specifically on this issue, the principles that have been in place since the beginning of the 1990s. We must also engineer some room for manoeuvre on the other side. ‘Firmness’ and ‘caution’ should be the watchwords in this debate on Iran and the Middle East. As regards Kosovo, a key element for many years when it comes to the Balkans, we continue to emphasise that territorial integrity must be maintained and that minorities must be respected. Unless these two principles are upheld in Kosovo, we will have great difficulty in achieving any kind of stability in the region.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, energy security is of course a technical question, but it has also become a political question, because, while demand continues to rise, the trend in the coming years will be for supply to level off. Consequently, tension will rise and I would suggest that as the major countries do with their vital supplies, we could carry out a thorough, inclusive study on the possible scenarios and the strategies for addressing those scenarios. If we do not do this, a number of surprises lie in wait."@en1
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