Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-06-18-Speech-3-341"
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"en.20080618.25.3-341"2
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"Mr President, I think that the key in our relationship is mutual interdependence, which many speakers have mentioned. On the one hand, it is in our interests to have a good relationship with Russia, a strategic partner and a neighbour, as our President rightly said. However, it is also important that Russia should be a partner in the solution of problems and not a partner for problems, and that is the other part of it.
Concerning university exchanges: I would just say that we promote such exchanges with Russia through, on the one hand, the Erasmus Mundus and the Tempus Programmes. We will be increasing our cooperation in those programmes in the coming years. In addition, Russia has also shown great interest in being a member of the Seventh Research and Development Framework Programme, which perhaps in future will be a very important sign for SIGMA. We have a European Studies Institute and we – both Russia and the European Union – might go on to work with this Institute and maybe even double our input.
A last general word before concluding: the official launch of this new agreement is, as I think everybody here would agree, a very important occasion and it is an opportunity. There is huge potential and I totally agree with our presidency that this will be a very important occasion.
We know that the negotiations will not be easy. They have to be comprehensive and because they are comprehensive – because we have a huge mandate – they will be somewhat complex and they will not be finished soon. However, this solid mandate also shows that we have a unity there. The unity of the mandate is there. It was very difficult to get it, but now that we have it, let us move forward and I urge you to back us on that.
Finally, as we all know, the relationship has to be strategic. Let us, therefore, take a step back from the daily irritants and the news from the wires and let us look at the broader historical context of Europe and Russia, as well as at the many interests we have in common. We have to find a way to manage our divergences while, at the same time, keeping a door open for dialogue. There is an opportunity. We have to take it, and together I am sure we will get a solid partnership out of that.
I have listened very carefully and I have taken note of all your comments. I will not be able to answer all your questions and comments now, but let me make a few general and more specific remarks.
Firstly, Russia is today a very important energy partner and, as a result of getting the negotiating mandate for the new agreement, we already have a common EU position on energy, because we have a common mandate. It was not easy to get the mandate, but now we have it and this is the framework of our negotiations. Therefore, it was very important to get it. As I said before, we want to enshrine the principles of the Energy Charter in the new agreement. The EU-Russia relationship is based on that – it is not a one-way street. We are an important market and a source of investment, just as Russia is a very important supplier to us. So, again, this interdependence is there and we have to have the same principles: reciprocity, transparency and non-discrimination.
One of the objectives of the European Union energy policy is to diversify routes of supply and sources of energy to increase competition and security in the EU energy market. This is not an anti-Russian policy. I think Russia will remain a key supplier to us, but any rational consumer spreads risks, particularly with energy prices skyrocketing. Given our growing interdependence on imports, particularly gas, the volume of Russian gas that we would like to buy is likely to grow, so we need a clear policy of diversification.
Let me turn to trade in general. It is very important that Russia becomes a member of the WTO. This is important not only for Russia but also for us. We will continue, therefore, to work actively in Geneva and bilaterally to get a deal. I think Russia needs membership of the WTO to modernise its economy, and with this President I am sure that is possible, as it was also possible with President Putin, who, himself, supported this issue.
Let me quickly mention NGOs and human rights issues: we are in regular contact with Russian NGOs and we reflect their concerns in our talks with the Russian authorities. We are ready to raise specific cases, where necessary, and we continue to support them financially through our European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights.
On the question of human rights in general: we hold human rights consultations with the Russians. Indeed, we speak about specific cases, human rights defenders, and sometimes about judicial cases. Our particular concerns relate to the situation in the Northern Caucasus. I only have five minutes and I could speak at length about the Northern Caucasus, Georgia, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and also on Nagorno-Karabakh and Moldova, so please do not take it that we did not know. This will be very important and is important.
I also wanted to say on the issue of the British Council that the EU has supported the UK Government in its dispute with Russia concerning the British Council offices in St Petersburg and Yekaterinburg. I think we now have a good dialogue on cultural cooperation with Russia, which I hope will provide an opportunity to emphasise the value of these contacts. We will, of course, consider whether anything more can be done.
Concerning the Finno-Ugric minorities: as you know, we are working on the implementation of the preparatory action for EUR 2.5 million, which Parliament put into the budget for this year and we see in this context implementation of the Council of Europe convention on minority rights, to which Russia is also a party. I think it should also cover national minorities in Russia."@en1
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