Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-03-10-Speech-1-039"
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"en.20080310.15.1-039"2
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"Mr President, President of the Commission, ladies and gentlemen, a few months ago, in Annapolis, the Israelis and the Palestinians had a dream: a dream of two nations, each living securely in its own State with internationally recognised borders, after decades of conflict, grieving families and tragedy. At the Paris conference a few months ago, the international community was willing to back that dream and enable it to become a reality.
Europe, the main international donor, believes in that peaceful and secure future and is making every possible effort, within the Quartet, to help the two parties break the vicious circle of violence and lack of understanding. However, in just a few days the disproportionate use of force and armed provocation killed dozens of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and several Israeli soldiers in violent confrontations. Only last Thursday, a Palestinian killed eight students at a prominent religious school and was himself killed. The bullets of fanatics and individuals motivated by revenge, intolerance and rejection of others have made it even more difficult to seek dialogue, compromise and peace.
The international community and we in Europe cannot and should not set ourselves up as judges of either side. Our task is to make the Annapolis signatories see reason, in other words bring them to the negotiating table. The PPE-DE delegation to Jerusalem and Ramallah that I led a few weeks ago taught me three lessons.
The first is the expectation of Europe in the Middle East: not just of a Europe that supports the peace process financially, although that is essential, but of a Europe that makes its presence felt much more and is stronger politically. We have to take more action and act more effectively.
The second lesson is that we need to encourage moderate parties in Israel and Palestine and give them our political support. The risky path that these parties have chosen, the path of peace, dialogue and responsibility to their peoples, is often not to their advantage electorally. It is those parties and moderate figures that we have to encourage as much as possible, because they and only they hold the keys to a peaceful and sustainable solution in the region.
The third point is that Europe has to make both sides realise that they will never be able to escape this vicious circle of security, defence and violence by building walls, killing people with rockets, humiliating the other side. No, it is only if their neighbours, especially young people, are allowed to build a future, realise their ambitions, develop in their own land, that a virtuous circle can be formed and produce results.
Together with my group, I welcome the recent call by both Israeli and Palestinian leaders for further dialogue, following the Annapolis roadmap. Europe has to step up its political support. I stress, its political support for the moderate groups in power. That is the only way out and yesterday, during the church service, we heard a Palestinian and a Jewish representative call for the same thing, peace for their peoples."@en1
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