Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-03-12-Speech-3-065"
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"en.20080312.3.3-065"2
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"Mr President, following on from Ms McGuinness’s reference to the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland, I comment that in my own country, the United Kingdom, good progress is being made in both Houses of Parliament and it is anticipated that the United Kingdom will ratify the Treaty in good order shortly. I do not wish to score points against political opponents, but it was disappointing to those British Conservatives who favour the Treaty that the British Liberal Party abstained. However, I am sure Mr Watson could explain the reasons for that.
At this Spring Council there will presumably be reference to the recent change of government in Russia. It is very important – and increasingly in this House – that the European Union has a common foreign policy with regard to the Russian Federation and to some of the proposals, for example the Nord Stream pipeline. Again, I do not want to anticipate, as this House will be debating the Russian elections on Thursday. However, the motion for a resolution, which apparently we will be able to approve, raises concerns about the treatment of the electoral observers and about what happened to those opposition candidates denied the ability to stand in those elections, and calls for the immediate release of some 50 demonstrators who were arrested in a violent way by Russian Interior Ministry men.
I hope the Council will take this extremely seriously. Obviously, we wish to congratulate President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin. We look for good and harmonious relations, but we cannot have them if this House and this European Union is divided. Germans, Dutch, British, Poles – all of us – must have a common view about our relations with the Russian Federation and about how we go about ensuring the energy supply. We do not have to approve Nord Stream; we might well approve the Amber pipeline. I look forward with great interest to the Council’s conclusions in relation to the EU common foreign policy and common foreign energy policy, and in particular to good relations with the Russian Federation."@en1
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