Resumen : Like a number of former Soviet Union republics in Central Asia, Turkmenistan has recently recorded quite high economic growth rates — often in the double digits — mainly thanks to the increasing global demand for energy and other raw materials, which are abundant in the country. Despite recent progress, the country's economic growth is still hampered by inefficient economic and public structures, still largely inspired by Soviet models and lacking modern infrastructure. The geographical location of Turkmenistan, a land-locked country with some 'difficult' neighbours (such as Iran and Afghanistan), also negatively influences its development. Among the former Soviet Union republics, Turkmenistan has what is probably the worst record in terms of economic and trade liberalisation. Despite growing public revenues, malnutrition still plagues remote rural areas, and poverty is widespread.

Autores : Roberto BENDINI (Policy Department, Directorate-General for External Policies of the Union, European Parliament)

Comisiones : Comercio internacional

Resumen : Freezing assets is an EU competence; recovering them, on the other hand, is a competence of the Member States. For the EU, recovering the assets of the ousted Tunisian and Egyptian regimes is an issue of political commitment and credibility, with the Union's reputation in Arab Spring countries partly at stake. The United Nations Convention against Corruption (in force since 2005) makes clear that recovering assets is a priority in a coordinated international fight against corruption. There exists a lack of efficient cooperation between 'requesting' and 'requested' states, as well as a paucity of reliable information about the amounts in question. The EU Council has recently adopted a decision to make it easier to share information relating to Egyptian and Tunisian funds in the EU. There are still many procedural problems to tackle, especially in the case of Egypt. An EU special task force could be set up to explore practical ways to better coordinate and exchange best practices between EU Member States and Tunisia and Egypt. The UK is a frontrunner in establishing a central structure facilitating the legal proceedings to recover assets. The European Parliament can send a clear signal of the EU's political commitment to helping Tunisia and Egypt recover their assets.

Autores : Andreas KETTIS and Pekka HAKALA (EP, DG EXPO, Policy Department)

Comisiones : Asuntos exteriores

Resumen : This note seeks to provide an initial appraisal of the European Commission's Impact Assessment accompanying its proposal for a Directive on the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco and related products, submitted on 19 December 2012. The Commission wishes to update existing Directive 2001/37/EC on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco products (Tobacco Products Directive, TPD), by adjusting it to current developments and including so far uncovered areas. The revision of the TPD focuses on five policy issues: (1) smokeless tobacco products (STP) and extension of the product scope (nicotine containing products and herbal products for smoking), (2) packaging and labelling, (3) ingredients and additives, (4) cross-border distance sales, and (5) traceability and security features.

Autores : Alina-Alexandra Georgescu

Comisiones : Evaluación de impacto, Medioambiente, sanidad pública y seguridad alimentaria

Resumen : This is the update of the June 2011 comprehensive digest of the EU legislation on aviation security. It reminds notably of the current obligations on the parties involved, the monitoring process or the international aspects. The note also sheds light on the regime which applies to liquids on board, to the cargo from third countries or to the financing of security measures which all give rise to recurrent significant debate.

Autores : Marc Thomas (Policy Department B: Structural and Cohesion Policies, European Parliament)

Comisiones : Transportes y turismo

Resumen : In recent years, the United States’ natural gas industry has undergone a significant transformation, dubbed a 'revolution': extraction rates have soared thanks to new technologies. The shale gas boom is having an unprecedented affect on the US energy market, and this, in turn, has important implications for the rest of the world, notably the Middle East and Russia. While the shale gas 'revolution' has spurred a debate on environmental consequences and sustainability within the US, other countries — including countries as diverse as Canada and China — have, in different ways, aimed to replicate the US boom. In the EU, a shale gas 'revolution' appears relatively unlikely, at least for the moment, given Europe’s less favourable geological conditions and its wary public. Nevertheless, some EU Member States rich in shale gas, such as Poland and the United Kingdom, are actively promoting shale gas exploration activities to diversify their energy mix, reduce energy dependency and enhance energy security. Other countries, such as France and Bulgaria, have for the moment chosen to privilege environmental constraints and have implemented bans. The remaining Member States seem to have adopted a 'wait-and-see' attitude. For all these states, however, the EU has an important role to play in ensuring a balanced common approach and encouraging the sustainable development of this industry while ensuring an adequate environmental protection. A recent Commission green paper on shale gas is a good initial step, although this should be followed with concrete action.

Autores : Jacopo BELLELLI supervised by Wanda TROSZCZYNSKA-VAN GENDEREN (Policy Department, Directorate-General for External Policies of the Union, European Parliament)

Comisiones : Asuntos exteriores

Resumen : The study analyses the role of economically dependent self-employed workers in the labour market by taking institutional factors into account, such as labour law and social protection rights. In addition to setting out the reasons for the increase of dependent self-employed workers, the authors provide case studies across various sectors of selected EU Member States. While the phenomenon of dependent self-employment is highly diverse across EU Member States, it has become increasingly important and can be regarded as part of a general trend towards increasing labour market flexibilisation.

Autores : Eichhorst, Werner (IZA, coordinator), Braga, Michela (Fondazione DeBenedetti), Famira-Mühlberger, Ulrike (WIFO), Gerard, Maarten (IDEA Consult), Horvath, Thomas (WIFO), Kahanec, Martin (CELSI), Kahancová, Marta (CELSI), Kendzia, Michael (IZA), Martišková, Monika (CELSI), Monti, Paola (Fondazione DeBenedetti), Pedersen, Jakob Louis (NIRAS), Stanley, Julian (University of Warwick), Vandeweghe, Barbara (IDEA Consult), Wehner, Caroline (IZA) and White, Caroline (University of Warwick)

Comisiones : Empleo y asuntos sociales

Resumen : This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying the proposals for a Regulation on consumer product safety and for a Regulation on market surveillance for products, the ‘Product safety and market surveillance package’, submitted by the Commission on 13 February 2013. The problem in need of EU intervention is described generally as ‘the existence of unsafe and non-compliant products circulating in the internal market, indicating a failure in the functioning of the legislative framework within which the internal market operates’. This note, prepared by the Impact Assessment Unit for the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO), analyses whether the principal criteria laid down in the Commission’s own Impact Assessment Guidelines, as well as additional factors identified by the Parliament in its Impact Assessment Handbook, appear to be met by the IA. It does not attempt to deal with the substance of the proposal. It is drafted for informational and background purposes to assist the relevant parliamentary committee(s) and Members more widely in their work.

Autores : Elke Ballon

Comisiones : Evaluación de impacto, Mercado interior y protección del consumidor

Resumen : In recent years, the use of drones and other unmanned robots in warfare and other situations of violence has increased exponentially, and States continue to invest significantly into increasing the operational autonomy of such systems. The present study provides an overview of the current and likely future use of such systems and examines the relevant legal implications under human rights law, international humanitarian law and the UN Charter. The study concludes that the present sense of uncertainty as to the applicable legal standards, the rapid development and proliferation of drone and robotic technology, and the perceived lack of transparency and accountability of current policies have the potential of polarizing the international community, undermining the rule of law and, ultimately, of destabilizing the international security environment as a whole. Accordingly, the study develops the following policy recommendations for European foreign policy: 1. First, the EU should make the promotion of the rule of law in relation to the development, proliferation and use of unmanned weapons systems a declared priority of European foreign policy. 2. In parallel, the EU should launch a broad inter-governmental policy dialogue aiming to achieve international consensus: (a) on the legal standards governing the use of currently operational unmanned weapon systems, and (b) on the legal constraints and/or ethical reservations which may apply with regard to the future development, proliferation and use of increasingly autonomous weapon systems. 3. Based on the resulting international consensus, the EU should work towards the adoption of a binding international agreement, or a non-binding code of conduct, aiming to restrict the development, proliferation or use of certain unmanned weapon systems in line with the legal consensus achieved.

Autores : Nils MELZER (Geneva Centre for Security Policy - GCSP and Swiss Chair of International Humanitarian Law, Geneva Academy - ADH)

Comisiones : Derechos humanos

Resumen : With the launch of the Eastern Partnership in 2009, the EU stepped up its involvement in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus. The offer of a closer relationship with Eastern neighbours is contingent upon partner countries converging with EU norms and standards. Effective regulatory approximation in the economic field is therefore critical to anchoring the reform process in partner countries and to fostering further progress in EU’s relations with its Eastern neighbours. Against this backdrop, this briefing paper reviews the achievements to date in regulatory approximation in the economic field in Eastern Partnership countries. Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas (DCFTAs) are a vital trade instrument for building up long-term economic relationships with eastern neighbours. They are likely to have a far-reaching influence on the reform process in partner countries. However, legal approximation and implementation of approximated legislation remain key challenges. The briefing highlights five major problems hindering legal approximation in the economic field: the complexity of the acquis to be adopted; institutional coordination; implementation capacities; costs of approximation and political sensitivity in partner countries. The briefing offers recommendations to improve the EU’s approach so that DCFTAs could fulfill their potential.

Autores : Laure DELCOUR (IRIS) and Kataryna WOLCZUK (Centre for Russian and East European Studies, University of Birmingham)

Comisiones : Asuntos exteriores