Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-06-16-Speech-3-077"
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"en.20100616.5.3-077"2
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"Madam President, I am delighted that we have a chance today to talk about the outcome of the last EU-Russia Summit in Rostov-on-Don. It was a good summit, it was pragmatic and constructive in character and it confirmed Russia’s desire for a stronger relationship with the European Union.
We also discussed crisis management cooperation, with both sides underlining the good experiences of EUFOR Chad and EU Navfor Atalanta. We agreed to see if we could develop this cooperation further. Russia handed over concrete proposals, which we will examine. Obviously, the EU decision-making autonomy must remain intact.
The summit was also an opportunity to discuss a number of international issues: the Middle East peace process, the Iranian nuclear programme, Afghanistan/Pakistan, Kosovo, the Eastern Neighbourhood, as well as broader European security. I was pleased with the joint statement that Foreign Minister Lavrov and I made on the loss of life during the Israeli military operation against the flotilla sailing to Gaza.
However, and as expected, our views diverged on Georgia, Kosovo and Moldova, where we heard well-known Russian positions.
At the summit, we launched the Partnership for Modernisation. As honourable Members know, a constant theme in President Medvedev’s time in office has been his recognition that Russia must modernise. The EU – as Russia’s most important trade partner and biggest investor – is a natural partner in this. Our approach is clear: to be successful, any drive to modernise must take a broad approach. It must encourage innovation and entrepreneurship, but also strengthen democratic values and the rule of law. This is why the effective functioning of the judiciary, the fight against corruption and dialogue with civil society are priority areas for the Partnership for Modernisation.
As the EU has in the past, we raised concerns about the day-to-day situation for human rights defenders and journalists. The demonstrations on 31 May in Moscow were an example of the difficulties that continue regarding the constitutional right to freedom of assembly. Growing instability in the North Caucasus is another area of concern.
But there have been positive developments too, and it is important we acknowledge them: the extension of the moratorium on the death penalty and the ratification of Protocol 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Work on the rule of law and fighting corruption will also contribute to a more business friendly environment. Investment flows to Russia have fallen off, and Russia understands it must do more to attract investors.
Joining the World Trade Organisation fits with this broader strategy of strengthening rules-based processes. The EU backs Russia’s early accession and we hope that the work to do so can be completed soon.
Political commitments to open trade must be translated into reality. The implementation of the Russia-Kazakhstan-Belarus Customs Union has raised some concerns. We have no issue with customs unions in general – the EU is a customs union – but we are concerned when these hinder trade rather than promote it, as appears to be the case with the proposed customs union.
On energy, our discussions focused on physical infrastructure, on the legal basis for our energy relations, and on energy efficiency. The Partnership for Modernisation will have a big part to play here. We need to see solid energy provisions in our new agreement, reflecting the principles of the Energy Charter Treaty. We also underlined that we see the Energy Charter as the most natural forum to discuss proposals for a multilateral energy security framework.
Energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gases are key in the fight against climate change. We encouraged Russia to be more ambitious on targets (currently 15%-20% compared to 1990 levels), and we will continue our efforts in the run-up to Cancún.
On visas, Russia is keen to proceed quickly, but it understands the internal context on this sensitive issue in the European Union. The EU underlined the need to move step-by-step, in a results-oriented approach. We have tabled a concrete proposal to this end and will also look again at our Visa Facilitation Agreement. We hope that bilateral agreements on local border traffic can be concluded with both Poland and Lithuania which would help Russians living in Kaliningrad."@en1
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