Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-09-01-Speech-1-122"
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"en.20080901.20.1-122"2
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".
Mr President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Commissioner, for several days now, advertisements have been run in various newspapers with the following message: ‘Lenin. Stalin. Putin. Give in?’ In fact, the message is somewhat simplistic, for it was actually under Lenin that South Ossetia became part of Georgia. In the process, some 18 000 lives were lost and around 50 000 people were expelled. Abkhazia became part of Georgia under Stalin. It is important to stick with the truth here and to take account of all sides’ positions. Zviad Gamsakhurdia, who became the first http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Georgia" \o "President of Georgia" of the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(country)" \o "Georgia (country)" and has now become very fashionable again, described the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ossetians" \o "Ossetians" as ‘trash that has to be swept out through the Rokihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roki_tunnel" \o "Roki tunnel" tunnel’. We do need to be mindful of this aspect of Georgian nationalism as well.
None of this, however – and let me make this very clear, as Martin Schulz has done on many occasions – none of this justifies the Russian intervention which, after all, has been ongoing for years. It is the expression of imperialist behaviour and we have repeatedly seen Russia exploiting the existing minority conflicts accordingly. We have witnessed repeated threats and boycotts which we absolutely cannot accept. I do not wish to deny that mistakes have been made by the West and by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, but in its relations with its neighbours, Russia has repeatedly sought to exploit internal conflicts for its own ends.
Nor does the recognition of Kosovo offer any justification for this action. The fact is that the European Union has always made clear and unequivocal attempts to achieve an international multilateral solution. Russia has made no such attempt. The European Union has also offered clear and unequivocal support for the Serbian minority in Kosovo and will continue to do so. What has Russia done? It has, at the very least, looked on while Georgians were expelled from South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and I hope that Mr Kouchner is right when he says that a new policy will now be adopted.
The EU should now concentrate on giving our neighbours our backing and support. We have been proposing a Union for the Black Sea for some time. Whatever name we choose for this structure, it is clear that the current Neighbourhood Policy must be strengthened and reinforced and that we must invite everyone in the region who has an interest in the integrity and stability of this region, from Turkey to Kazakhstan, to get involved.
If Russia is prepared to revert to a policy of cooperation and respect for its neighbours, Russia will be invited to join as well. Russia feels strong at the moment because of the high energy prices, but we all know that this is not a sound economic basis for Russia and that it has a lot to gain from partnership and cooperation with Europe. In the meantime, we must focus on giving our neighbours our clear support. In that sense, Mr President-in-Office, may I say that the conclusions that you have agreed at today’s Summit are good conclusions which offer a sound basis on which to move forward, for they are a clear expression of what is realistic and sustainable. I hope that the European Parliament will arrive at similarly clear and consensus-based conclusions as the Council, so that the European Union can speak with one – and a stronger – voice."@en1
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