Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-09-27-Speech-2-733-000"
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"en.20110927.33.2-733-000"2
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"Madam President, to start with, I can assure you of my understanding for your emotion and your concern, although some of the statements have rather crossed the line. Let me assure you that the last time I checked the news, no one had been attacked.
I agree with those who made the point that what is really of the utmost importance is to send, at this point in time, the clear message that, as far as the benefits of this hydrocarbon project are concerned, they belong to all citizens of Cyprus, in both communities.
I wish I had an answer to the question of what our contingency plan is if the United Nations decides to withdraw. I do not have one, and I am not aware of anyone having a Plan B. This is one more reason why we all need to support the United Nations and the Secretary-General and special representatives. President Barroso recently sent a special envoy who at this point in time, with the talks being intensified, is fully committed to the talks and is available to the special representative Alexander Downer, on a 24/7 basis.
Let me also address the issue of the statement that Turkey is going to boycott the Cyprus Presidency of the European Council. I was confronted with this statement when I visited Turkey soon after the elections, a couple of hours after the new government had been formed. My immediate reaction was that, instead of sending this strange ultimatum, all our efforts needed to be focused on finding a comprehensive settlement before that time. This is exactly the angle which, I understand, has been used by the Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu, speculating on what is going to happen if no settlement is reached on the Cyprus issue. I shall not continue his speculation on what is going to happen. I think we all need to use the time between now and the beginning of next year – not the end of June – to move the settlement talks forward.
I disagree, with respect, with those who try to say that we have been talking for thirty years. There have been a number of phases and a number of efforts. We do not have anything better than the current plan, with which we are moving forward and making progress. The Secretary-General of the United Nations made this clear during the last meeting with both leaders. There is commitment on the part of these two leaders; there is a kind of road map that they have both committed to. So expectations are high.
I was talking about frustration; that frustration is unfortunate and largely unnecessary. What we need now is constructive engagement; we do not see any other option. Turkey and the European Union need each other more than ever in addressing jointly the challenges of the day. They are already closely linked by trade, investments, 50 years of association and now, accession negotiations. There are real benefits to working closely together with Turkey in our common neighbouring countries.
Most importantly, however, the European Union accession process with Turkey has proved a powerful instrument to force reforms in this country. Turkey today is a more democratic country than it was ten years ago thanks to the European Union accession perspective. Even though reforms should be accelerated and broadened, they nevertheless continue, as demonstrated over the summer by significant steps such as the return of confiscated property to the non-Muslim religious communities or strengthening of civilian control of the military. And yes, I am aware of the increasingly troubling issue of press freedom.
I am concerned about the current legislation: particularly the anti-terrorist law, which has an ambiguity which is unfortunately being used to put a huge number of journalists in unnecessary detention.
But my approach is that we need to open chapters and engage with Turkey, rather than closing chapters. Let me remind this House that, as far as the accession process is concerned, we have only three chapters to open. Three chapters are available to us to open. Their nature and substance makes them rather difficult, and if you looked at the accession process of some other countries, you would see that those chapters which are available for the EU-Turkey relationship are being addressed only at a late stage of the accession process. The truth is that part of these chapters are being frozen on the basis of the Commission recommendation – some of you mentioned the Ankara additional protocol, the Ankara agreement. But there are others which are being blocked unilaterally by Member States, thus limiting the area of engagement. I do not want to speculate whether, if we open the chapter on energy, we will be facing a similar situation to today’s.
I will address a different issue. If we open Chapter 23, on fundamental rights and the judiciary, it will give us an opportunity to keep abreast of the Turkish reforms in the most important area – the rule of law. It is a pity that this chapter is not available for the accession negotiations. Turkey and the European Union need to develop a renewed positive agenda, building on the achievements of the accession process and our joint interest, and give a new momentum to our relations. This supposes renewed efforts in a number of key areas, including support for political reforms in Turkey, alignment with our
addressing important trade issues, closer cooperation on visas and migration and a closer dialogue on foreign policy.
Honourable Members, I believe this is the only way forward, and I look forward to discussing these matters further with you in the coming months starting in October, once the Commission has adopted its enlargement package.
I think we can clearly say that we all agree that increased tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean are in nobody’s interest. We can also agree that we stand by one of our Member States when its rights are called into question.
Let me make a remark here, because there was a question of the extent to which the Commission considered this to be a volatile issue. What is volatile is the disagreement on the delimitation of borders: exclusive economic zone. What is not volatile, and never will be, is an approach based on threats, which violates the United Nations Charter.
But we all also acknowledge that the most important issues right now are the Cyprus settlement talks. The United Nations and the Secretary-General, but, in particular, the leaders of the two communities, have invested enormous effort in making them succeed, and it is our responsibility and duty to support these efforts in any way we can.
A united Cyprus would bring peace, stability and security within the European Union, in our close neighbourhood, and in one of the most troubled regions in the world. It would also have a positive effect on relations between the European Union and Turkey.
I am well aware that the European Union and Turkey are in a delicate phase in their relations; the pace of the accession process is disappointing, with no chapter opened since June 2010. The European Union is expecting more and faster reforms in Turkey to address urgent issues under fundamental rights and freedoms. Turkey, too, is frustrated by what it perceives as a lack of commitment from the European Union to negotiations. I believe the fresh tensions around the whole drilling issue partly result from this frustration.
Let me make a couple of remarks here in reaction to a very important debate and adding to a number of the statements I made at the beginning and also during the Question Time we had earlier today in this House.
I have no problem with assertive foreign policy – if that policy is responsible. I have a huge problem with irresponsible policy. Threatening a Member State, talking about the role of the navy, is irresponsible and needs to be condemned. It is being condemned, and it will be condemned.
Another point: the issue has never been doubts over the rights of one of us. No one has indicated that there could be a problem. The only point was timing. Most leaders made a personal commitment to the Secretary-General of the United Nations that they will not be distracted by anything and that all their efforts will be focused on finding a comprehensive settlement, in such a way that the settlement is found before Cyprus assumes the Presidency of the European Council."@en1
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