MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

6.12.2006

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Paavo Väyrynen and Margarita Starkevičiūtė
on behalf of the ALDE Group
on the EU-Russia Summit

B6‑0639/2006

European Parliament resolution on the EU-Russia Summit

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the EU-Russia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, which entered into force in 1997 and is set to expire in 2007,

–  having regard to the European Parliament’s previous resolutions on Russia, and in particular the report by Cecilia Malmström adopted on 26 May 2005,

–  having regard to the outcome of the 8th EU-Russia Summit in Helsinki on 24 November 2006 and the Northern Dimension Summit, which took place at the same time,

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

A.  whereas the European Union continues to be committed to further deepening and developing the ‘strategic partnership’ between the European Union and Russia,

B.  whereas the current EU-Russia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement is set to expire in 2007 and whereas negotiations on a new agreement were due to be launched at the EU‑Russia Summit,

C.  whereas the European Union should be able to unite its forces and speak with one voice in its relations with Russia,

D.  whereas relations with Russia must be based on mutual interests and common values,

E.  whereas there is widespread concern – in Russia, in the European Union and elsewhere – over democracy and human rights in Russia and over the inability of the Russian police and judicial authorities to find those responsible for political murders,

F.  whereas on 10 November Russia introduced a new embargo on imports of Polish meat and poultry products, saying it was concerned at violations of veterinary regulations and imports of meat from third countries; whereas Russia banned fish imports from the EU on 24 November,

G.  whereas border-crossing formalities are very slow on the EU-Russian borders, causing intolerable queues of lorries at some checkpoints,

1.  Expresses its continued support for developing relations with Russia in a strategic partnership that goes beyond trade and economic relations and also includes the objective of acting together in the international arena;

2.  Points out that EU-Russia relations must be based on mutual interests and common values; democratic principles and human rights must therefore have a central role in the new framework agreement;

3.  Stresses the importance of unity and solidarity among the Member States of the European Union in its relations with Russia; welcomes, therefore, the common EU line established at the unofficial Lahti Summit, enabling the Union to speak with one voice at its meetings with President Vladimir Putin in Lahti and in Helsinki;

4.  Welcomes the open discussions on democracy and human rights at the two summits; underlines, however, that the current situation in Russia gives cause for serious concern regarding respect for human rights, democracy, freedom of expression and the rights of civil society and individuals to challenge and hold the authorities accountable for their action;

5.  Supports the deep concern expressed by the Union regarding the murder of Anna Politkovskaya and other cases of politically motivated acts of violence; calls on the Council and Commission to use their authority to prevail upon the Russian Government to demonstrate its willingness and ability to assist in the investigations aimed at finding the killers and to fulfil its duty to stop this vicious circle;

6.  Welcomes the intensified EU-Russia dialogue on energy issues; points out that energy cooperation must be based on the principles of the Energy Charter and that these must be incorporated in the new framework agreement between the EU and Russia in order to ensure transparent and fair mutual investment conditions, equal access and a rules-based market;

7.  Welcomes recent declarations by the Russian authorities about the solidity of the EU‑Russia energy partnership, stressing that Europe ‘will never have a more reliable energy supplier than Russia’, but is concerned at the lack of investment in the Russian energy sector, including in energy efficiency, which might lead to shortages in Russian domestic supply and difficulties in honouring its export obligations; expresses its concern that Russia is using its energy sector as a foreign policy instrument;

8.  Welcomes the agreement signed in Helsinki whereby Russia will phase out the fees for EU airlines flying over Siberia, thus resolving a 20-year dispute, and pave the way for EU carriers to increase the number of routes to Asian destinations; notes that this agreement also removes one of the last obstacles to Russia’s entry to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which will open up new possibilities for increased cooperation and trade between the EU and Russia;

9.  Welcomes the successful outcome of the Northern Dimension Summit, which took place in parallel with the EU-Russia Summit, with the participation of Russia, the EU, Norway and Iceland; hopes that the Northern Dimension Framework Document adopted there will prove to be a good basis for developing closer regional and cross-border cooperation with Russia;

10.  Regrets that the summit failed to launch the negotiations for the new framework agreement between the EU and Russia, and encourages the Finnish and German Presidencies to continue working towards the adoption of the negotiating mandate as soon as possible, so that negotiations can start without further delay; underlines that further progress must be made on having the border agreements between Russia and Estonia and Latvia ratified and implemented;

11.  Expresses concern that recent changes to Part IV of the Russian civil code on intellectual property rights fall short of the standards required for the WTO (TRIPS), and still further short of the deeper commitments envisaged for a strategic partnership;

12.  Points out that cooperation between the EU and Russia can be developed and intensified on the basis of the existing Partnership Agreement, which can and must be continued until the new agreement can be applied;

13.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to redouble their efforts to solve the problems at border-crossing points at the EU-Russia borders; points out that additional cross-border capacity must be constructed in order to accommodate an increase in the flow of goods; urges the Russian authorities to cut down queuing at the border by speeding up inspections and by moving some of them from the border area to more remote locations;

14.  Expresses its solidarity with Poland in the current trade dispute with Russia; calls on the Commission to give all possible assistance to Poland in removing the existing obstacles to meat exports; calls for determined action on the Russian import restrictions on EU fish products;

15.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the Governments and Parliaments of the Member States and Russia.