MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

5.1.2005

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Jan Marinus Wiersma, Erika Mann, Hannes Swoboda and Benoît Hamon
on behalf of the PSE Group
on transatlantic relations

B6‑0025/2005

European Parliament resolution on transatlantic relations

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Transatlantic Declaration on EU-US relations of 1990 and the New Transatlantic Agenda of 1995,

–  having regard to the European Parliament resolution of 22 April 2004 on the state of the Transatlantic Partnership on the eve of the EU-US summit on 25-26 June 2004 in Dublin,

–  having regard to the results of the EU-US summit on 25-26 June 2004 in Dublin,

–  having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the last EU-US summit in Dublin took place following a period of sharp differences and a significant and deplorable deterioration in the transatlantic partnership,

B.  whereas the EU-US summit in Dublin led to some moderate progress, giving some new impetus to the strengthening of the economic partnership and, in joint statements, addressed the situation in the broader Middle East as well as different aspects of the fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,

C.   whereas solid progress has to be made this year given the present nature of the transatlantic agenda,

1.  Hopes that the second term in office of President Bush and the new administration will lead to a fresh start in EU-US transatlantic relations; declares the willingness of the European Union, and specifically the European Parliament, to cooperate and work together to solve global problems which require global efforts and a common approach;

2.  Is aware that in several policy areas serious differences in analysis, diagnosis and policy approach exist between the EU and the US; is concerned that at present there are only limited positive signs of a real policy shift by the present US administration, and would expect the new administration to make more efforts to rebuild and renew the partnership between the EU and the US;

3.  Insists that the central task of transatlantic dialogue must be to define the partnership between the EU and the US as equal partners, addressing the roles of each in global and regional affairs and the firm commitment of both to multilateralism and to a system based on the rule of international law; reiterates its view in this context that the UN should be the only authority to decide on international military intervention, and calls on the US to actively engage in a reform of the UN and in particular its Security Council, including its composition, in order to make it more effective and accountable and increase capacity to implement its decisions;

4.  Calls for a renewed debate on those policy areas where positions between the EU and the US remain strongly divided but where a convergence of positions is needed; these include: global security, the situation in Iraq, effective strategies on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction including the situation in Iran, the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, and environmental and energy policy, in particular with regard to the Kyoto protocol;

5.  Expresses the view that strong cooperation between the EU, the US, the future Palestinian President and the new Israeli government is needed to put an end to the violence and restart negotiations on the basis of the commitments made in the 'road map' in order to bring more stability to the Middle East region;

6.  Is deeply concerned about the possibly dangerous impact of the growing US federal budget deficit on the world economy and the balance of international currency markets; calls on the US to assume its shared responsibility for economic stability in an increasingly interdependent world; expresses the hope that, despite several bilateral trade disputes within the framework of the ongoing WTO negotiations, significant progress towards a functioning transatlantic market can be achieved soon, in view of the advanced state of integration of both economies;

7.  Reserves the right to table a more detailed resolution covering all policy areas in the run-up to the EU-US summit later this year;

8.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Parliaments of the Member States, and the President and Congress of the United States of America.