Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-02-15-Speech-3-425-000"
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"en.20120215.22.3-425-000"2
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"Madam President, I am grateful for the opportunity to present the EU position and latest activities on Syria on behalf of the High Representative, Baroness Ashton.
The international community has a responsibility to stop the regime’s killing machine. Last Monday, during a debate at the United Nations General Assembly on the situation in Syria, a vast majority of UN Member States condemned the widespread violation of human rights by the regime. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in her assessment, said that the Assad regime had ‘manifestly failed’ to fulfil its obligation to protect its population and had engaged in crimes against humanity.
The Human Rights Council at its upcoming session should also take appropriate action on Syria. The EU is ready to mobilise assistance to relieve the hardship of the Syrian population. The Commission is preparing a contingency plan in the area of humanitarian assistance. While bilateral cooperation with the Syrian regime is entirely suspended, the Commission and the External Action Service continue to support projects to the benefit of NGOs, Syrian civil society organisations and human rights defenders, as well as Palestinian refuges.
The situation in Syria requires that the EU must maintain a presence through its Member State missions and the EU delegation as the Syrian opposition is asking us to do. Not only to observe and report on the situation, but also to signal clearly that the regime cannot repress its population in total impunity and the Syrian people will not be left alone.
Close coordination among the EU missions in Damascus is taking place also with respect to contingency planning. Similarly, actions are being undertaken with respect to the neighbouring countries. Last but not least, the EU continues to engage with Syrian opposition groups. It is essential to encourage them to strengthen their coordination and develop a common vision on the way forward in order to convince the Syrian population of the value of their cause and to promote an orderly and peaceful transition in Syria.
The High Representative has offered the EU’s support to the Arab League in its efforts towards bringing together the Syrian opposition groups and their common vision for the transition. I would also like to thank you, honourable Members, for your support in the past months. The valued statements made in the European Parliament and the resolutions adopted by this House have helped the EU to shape its policy towards Syria.
It is important that we maintain pressure on the Syrian regime. The European Parliament has a key role in ensuring that the Syrian people are not left alone in their struggle. The High Representative is committed to continuing to work with you on joint efforts to support the Arab League and to stop the ongoing violence. Syria will be at the core of her meeting in Washington at the end of this week.
The EU condemns the totally unacceptable escalation of violence in Syria. The time has come to speak with one voice and demand an end to the bloodshed and a democratic future for Syria. The EU has been leading international calls for strong UN action. We are very disappointed, as you all are, by the recent failure of the United Nations Security Council to adopt a resolution due to Russia and China’s renewed veto. Last Saturday, following the vote, the High Representative once again stressed that the EU will continue to support all efforts by the League of Arab States and called once more on all members of the UN Security Council to assume their responsibilities.
The Syrian crisis is, and will remain, very high on the EU agenda. EU foreign ministers will discuss it again on 27 February. The EU has, throughout the conflict, stood by the Syrian people and the High Representative continues to increase pressure on the Syrian authorities through multiple levels. The urgent priority for now is to stop the regime’s repression and the escalating violence.
In accordance with the Arab League’s plan, it is also essential that the regime frees political detainees, removes troops, tanks and weapons from the cities and allows independent observers and the media to freely travel and report in Syria. To this end, the EU is intensively engaged with the League of Arab States and other players to find a peaceful solution. The High Representative has stressed the key role of regional involvement and Arab League leadership.
On the diplomatic front, Catherine Ashton has been speaking to Secretary-General El-Arabi to discuss the next steps and express our political support for the efforts that the Arab League is undertaking to solve the Syrian crisis. She has also spoken to the Secretary-General of the UN Ban Ki-moon, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Davutoğlu and several other leaders with the same objective.
The EU welcomes the League of Arab States’ efforts to increase international pressure on the Syrian regime. Leadership of the Arab League is key. Due to the escalation of violence against the Syrian population, the League decided on 12 February to end its observation mission. It asked the UN Security Council to issue a resolution to form a joint Arab-UN peacekeeping force to supervise the implementation of a ceasefire.
The Arab League has also decided to enforce the economic sanctions of previous resolutions of the Arab League and agreed on a meeting of Friends of Syria to take place in Tunisia on 24 February. We welcome this development. The Tunis meeting will provide a timely opportunity to build an international consensus on Syria and put forward urgent proposals to stop the killings and to seek a peaceful outcome to the current crisis.
There is no doubt that the EU and the High Representative will take an active part in this endeavour. The High Representative has also offered EU expertise in the area of sanctions and has stressed the need to coordinate closely in the dialogue with opposition groups.
The work on the UN front must go on. We continue to seek the support of partners so that the Security Council can come back to this issue in due course and agree on a strong resolution on Syria. The High Representative is making the case rapidly with members of the Security Council and regional partners to achieve this goal. The EU message to Russia and China is clear: they should not be on the wrong side of history."@en1
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