Acta literal de los debates

Lunes 6 de junio de 2016 - Estrasburgo

16. Operaciones de apoyo a la paz - compromiso de la UE con las Naciones Unidas y la Unión Africana (breve presentación)

Puhemies. – Esityslistalla on seuraavana lyhyt esittely Geoffrey Van Ordenin mietinnöstä Rauhanoperaatiot – EU:n yhteistyö YK:n ja Afrikan unionin kanssa (2015/2275(INI)) (A8—0158/2016).

  Geoffrey Van Orden, rapporteur. – Madam President, when I set out to write this report, my aim was to have an end product that reflected the reality of the situation and was useful. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the shadow rapporteurs for their cooperation and efforts in helping to achieve this. I believe we have a report that is strongly supported across Parliament.

It deals with a critical issue bearing on so many current concerns in our countries. We have seen flows of refugees and economic migrants, as well as the terrorist threat, increasing – and, by the time these problems are on the doorstep of Europe, it is too late. It is therefore in our interest not only to put our own houses in order so that we reduce the pull factors and our own vulnerabilities, but also to help the African countries, in particular, to deal with their problems.

It is thus in all our interests for African countries, and the African Union in particular, to do more to create peace and stability on their continent, but they need help to achieve this, particularly in building capacity. A key priority is to make the African Standby Force operational and really effective as soon as possible. This requires stronger political will and engagement from the African countries themselves, more advocacy by us in African capitals and practical assistance by our Member States and – in terms of funding and civil resources – by the EU itself.

So often, Parliament’s reports give the impression that the EU alone is shouldering the world’s problems. This is far from the truth. We need to recognise the efforts of the United Nations, the African Union, the United States and NATO, as well as many individual European countries, in addition to the excellent contribution from the EU itself.

The EU must also avoid duplicating the work of others. There needs to be greater cooperation and communication between all those involved. Given the scale of the challenges and the complex involvement of other organisations and nations, the EU should seek an appropriate division of labour, focusing on where it can best add value, including through support to operations by individual Member States. There is probably sufficient funding available to Africa and for peace support operations. It is a question of how it is spent. There is a requirement for greater transparency and accountability in order to give assurance about appropriate spending. We have a duty to ensure funds are not abused or wasted. The EU should focus its efforts: it needs to prioritise. There are a great many issues to be dealt with and it would be most effective to be selective in the ones we attempt to tackle.

Our engagement over the years in helping overcome the problem of anti-personnel landmines, which have been such a threat in post-conflict development, is a case in point. I do not happen to believe that promotion of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) agenda is the right focus. Others are better able to provide military support. The EU can be useful in other ways. I therefore do not support the references to the CSDP that have been made through amendments to my report in committee.

In order for peace support operations (PSOs) in Africa to be effective in bringing about real change, there must be a consistent drive towards a more coordinated response by all international actors. The UN must carry the main responsibility for external military intervention, but the African Union must increasingly take the regional lead, supported by the most capable of our nations, as well as by the United States, NATO and the EU as appropriate. Enhanced international collaboration, appropriate division of labour and a continued emphasis on African capability and responsibility must be our priorities. The needs of the African countries concerned and the security and cohesion of our own countries should be the overall guiding principles for EU involvement.

Pyynnöstä myönnettävät puheenvuorot

  Bogdan Andrzej Zdrojewski (PPE). – Pani Przewodnicząca! To dobre sprawozdanie. Efektem pracy z generałem Van Ordenem jest sprawozdanie, które z jednej strony jest krytyczne, a z drugiej strony bez wątpienia dobrze ocenia to wszystko, co się działo w Afryce z punktu widzenia różnych misji, nie tylko europejskich. Ale, co dla mnie bardzo istotne, ten krytycyzm jest głównie po to, aby te misje, krótko mówiąc, były lepsze, lepiej funkcjonowały, aby rzeczywiście wyższa efektywność tego całego wysiłku gwarantowała poprawę sytuacji w Afryce.

Chciałbym także podkreślić, że przy krytycyzmie posła sprawozdawcy udało się ustalić właściwe proporcje dotyczące właściwego zaangażowania Europy w misję w Afryce w ogóle. Myślę, że, ogólnie rzecz biorąc, to sprawozdanie będzie źródłem czy pewną szansą na to, aby nasze misje, w związku z którymi ponosimy określone koszty były efektywniejsze, sprawniejsze i ważniejsze dla Afryki.

  Nicola Caputo (S&D). – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, in questo momento sono in corso 16 operazioni ONU per il mantenimento della pace su diversi fronti del pianeta, con l'impiego di circa 120 000 unità. L'Africa costituisce il punto di maggiore impegno nel difficile sforzo di costruzione della pace, un continente devastato da innumerevoli conflitti e il costo di questi conflitti si conta in milioni di morti, in distruzioni senza fine, nel blocco di qualsiasi processo di sviluppo e nell'esodo di massa delle popolazioni verso l'Europa. I paesi europei e la stessa Unione europea sono importanti contribuenti del sistema ONU, in particolare attraverso il sostegno finanziario accordato ai programmi e ai progetti delle Nazioni Unite. È necessario fare molto di più per vincere le sfide che abbiamo di fronte. L'attuale azione delle Nazioni Unite deve essere quindi potenziata e resa più incisiva dal contributo di tutti i paesi che hanno i mezzi tecnici ed economici. L'Europa e la comunità internazionale devono essere in grado di vincere questa sfida, non solo attraverso le missioni di pace ma soprattutto esercitando la necessaria azione per la prevenzione dei conflitti.

  Νότης Μαριάς ( ECR). – Κυρία Πρόεδρε, οι ξένες επεμβάσεις είναι και θα παραμείνουν καταδικαστέες όποια μορφή και αν λαμβάνουν. Στο όνομα της υποστήριξης της ειρήνης διαμελίστηκαν χώρες, κοινωνίες ολόκληρες καταδικάστηκαν στην υπανάπτυξη και λαοί εξαφανίστηκαν. Ο απολογισμός των πρόσφατων παρεμβάσεων και επεμβάσεων στην Αφρική δεν αποτελεί εξαίρεση από αυτή την περιγραφή· παρεμβάσεις ανεπιτυχείς ακόμη και από στρατιωτική σκοπιά. Τι έγινε στη Σομαλία, στο Σαχέλ, στη Λιβύη; Τα παραδείγματα αυτά δεν είναι τυχαία. Είναι τρεις περιοχές στις οποίες μετά από ξένες στρατιωτικές επεμβάσεις το σαλαφιστικό Ισλάμ έγινε ισχυρότερο. Δηλαδή επανελήφθη το σενάριο του Ιράκ ακέραιο.

Οι αποφάσεις όμως έχουν κόστος, ειδικά οι ανεύθυνες αποφάσεις, και ιδιαίτερα της Γαλλίας, της οποίας οι διαδοχικές κυβερνήσεις και οι επιφανείς δήθεν διανοούμενοι επιχειρούν να συμπαρασύρουν ολόκληρη την Ευρώπη σε καταστροφικούς πολέμους στην Αφρική. Ας αναλάβει λοιπόν τις ευθύνες της η Γαλλία, ιδίως σε σχέση με τους πρόσφυγες και τους μετανάστες που πνίγονται καθημερινά στα ανοιχτά της Κρήτης και της Λαμπεντούζα. Ας αναλάβει και την ανοικοδόμηση των χωρών που έχει καταστρέψει και ας μη χρεώνει στα άλλα κράτη μερίδιο της δικής της αδιέξοδης διπλωματίας που κρατά επί χρόνια.

  Ivan Jakovčić (ALDE). – Gospođo predsjednice, Ujedinjeni narodi, Europska unija i Afrička unija ključ su uspjeha za stabilnost i za sigurniju budućnost afričkog kontinenta. Ali tu treba pozvati i druge zemlje, treba pozvati, i već se angažiraju naravno, i SAD i Kina koja ima nekoliko tisuća vojnika spremnih u svakom trenutku za pomoć u Africi. To su dobri primjeri. Ono što NATO čini, to su dobri primjeri. Ono što čine naše zemlje, Europska je unija milijardu i pol eura utrošila za razminiranje nakon raznih ratova u zadnjih 20 godina. To su stvari koje trebamo isticati, ali naravno trebamo isticati i ozbiljne probleme.

Eko-migranti su ono što nam se dešava danas, a još više će se dešavati sutra. Eko-migranata će biti sve više zbog klimatskih promjena i krajnje je vrijeme da učinimo konkretne korake za stabilizaciju i sigurnost u Africi.

  Miguel Viegas (GUE/NGL). – Senhora Presidente, contrariamente às profecias dos anos noventa, que anunciavam uma era de paz, de segurança e de prosperidade, vivemos hoje num mundo mais perigoso, com mais guerras, mais desigualdade e miséria.

Estas guerras, quase sempre disfarçadas com intenções humanitárias, refletem a necessidade dos países ricos de dominarem as grandes reservas de matérias-primas e, por isso, fomentam a corrupção. A África está cansada de ingerência, está cansada de governos corruptos suportados por multinacionais com a conivência dos países capitalistas. Está cansada de sucessivas manobras de ingerência nas quais despejam armas em cima do continente africano e se fomentam guerras fratricidas a contento das grandes multinacionais do complexo militar industrial.

A África clama por um novo paradigma ao nível das relações internacionais, um paradigma baseado no respeito pela soberania nacional, pelo respeito à autodeterminação, ao direito de cada povo poder dispor dos seus recursos e escolher o seu próprio modelo desenvolvimento.

  Jonathan Arnott (EFDD). – Madam President, Commission President Juncker famously said that a European army will be necessary in the long run. This report, written by a British Conservative MEP, does not support a common security and defence policy. It is pro-EU enough in a lot of ways, because it talks about strengthening EU military cooperation, but it stops short and deliberately does not support a common security and defence policy.

And of course what we have in this Chamber is amendment after amendment putting all of those things back in, because the European Union wants to move inexorably in that direction, towards a European army. So if anyone is in any doubt that that is the direction of travel, all you need do is look at the amendments to this report.

(Pyynnöstä myönnettävät puheenvuorot päättyvät)

  Christos Stylianides, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, I would like to thank you very much for your kind invitation to attend this presentation and for the exchange of views. I very much welcome Mr Van Orden’s report on EU engagement with the United Nations and the African Union in peace support operations. I also very much appreciate the close involvement of both the Committee on Development and the Subcommittee on Security and Defence on this important issue, which falls at the intersection of security and development.

The UN and the African Union are our strategic partners in preventing conflicts, promoting stability and building peace in Africa, including through the deployment of peace support operations in crisis and post-conflict scenarios. Peace and security is a priority area of cooperation under both the Africa-EU Strategic Partnership and the new EU-UN Strategic Partnership. African-led peace support operations receive substantial financial support from the European Union under the African Peace Facility (APF). As noted in the report, stronger emphasis will now be given to building the African Union’s own capacities in order to enable it to respond to and manage crises by itself. The establishment of the African Standby Force is an important milestone in this regard. Let me also recall that, through the APF, we provide support not only to African-led missions, but also to the overall African Peace and Security Architecture and to the Early Response Mechanism, which plays a critical role in conflict prevention and resolution by enabling African mediation and preventive diplomacy actions.

We are working hard to ensure the financial sustainability of the APF, which is being called on to provide support to an increasing number of peace and security operations. But this needs fairer burden sharing with our African and international partners, as called for in the report. We raised this important issue at the recent meeting of the Commission with the African Union Commission.

EU crisis management missions and operations in Africa, under our Common Security and Defence Policy, are also closely coordinated with the UN and AU, particularly when deployed in parallel to UN and/or African Union peace support operations, for instance in Somalia, the Central African Republic (CAR) and Mali. We maintain regular contacts with the African Union and the UN at all levels, from the planning stage to the end of the implementation stage, not only in the headquarters but also in the field, in order to ensure an efficient division of labour, to share relevant information, including on situational awareness, and, indeed, to conduct joint conflict analysis, for instance in the CAR.

Cooperation with the UN in building African Union peace and security capacities is also close and fruitful, not only in crisis management, early warning and mediation but also in policy areas such as security-sector reform and disarmament, demobilisation and the reintegration of ex—combatants. When building African capacities in police and criminal justice matters, we also discuss with the UN relevant principles and approaches.

Beyond the specific case of Africa, we also welcome the draft report’s support for the objectives of the recent Joint Communication on Capacity Building for Security and Development, which aims at better enabling our partners to prevent and manage crises by themselves, acknowledging the need to provide support to both the civilian law-enforcement services and the military, particularly in conflict-affected countries.

Puhemies. – Keskustelu on päättynyt.