Mr President, I can only endorse the speeches that have just been made, especially Mr Morillon’s. We certainly cannot continue to accept this situation. But we can feel gratified that we are voting in Parliament today on a resolution on the situation in Iraq which has, for the first time – and I hope we will take advantage of this to change our style a bit – won the approval of almost all the political groups. That unanimity is reassuring, because all the signatories to this resolution are in agreement on the essential point. That has happened because we all now know that the essential point is a certain concept of humanity, relations between peoples, values – in short, civilisation, the heart of Europe’s identity. Mr President, this resolution clearly calls for respect for the UN resolutions, especially Resolutions 687, 688 and 1293, and also Resolution 1284 on which we are seeking clarification. I would mention, too, that only two members of the Security Council voted for it, against the advice of the three other members who abstained. Mr President, this does not mean we are releasing the Iraqi regime from its responsibilities and obligations. It means that, for the first time, the international community is being asked to show consistency with its own principles, because the various UN committees agree that these resolutions have been virtually all applied by the Iraqi regime, except for some minor points of interpretation or detail. And here I differ slightly from Mr Collins. The fact is the discrepancies between Iraq and the international community do not justify maintaining the embargo. Remember, the Iraqi people are innocent. But it is they and not their rulers, who were never democratically elected, who are now paying the price of these sanctions in human lives. Mr Hans von Sponek, the former head of the UN Oil for Food Programme, mentioned by Ms McKenna just now, said that, as a human being, with a heart and a soul, he could no longer tolerate what he was seeing in Iraq. He decided to resign. The disproportion between the constantly reiterated demands of certain members of the Security Council for the sanctions to be ruthlessly maintained and their consequences for the Iraqi people is – I am weighing my words – truly terrifying! UNICEF estimates that half a million children have died as a result of nine years of sanctions, to the utter indifference of the civilised world. It must be remembered that the rules of war involve respect for civilians. The right of coercion over populations – it must also be remembered – should not lead to the right to starve them. That is also one of the great principles of Western civilisation! Mr President, our resolution is very consistent. It calls for respect for all the UN resolutions first and foremost, clarification of Resolution 1284 and, consequently, the lifting of sanctions and constant vigilance against the Iraqi regime, respect by all for the rules of the UN Charter, including the members of the Security Council who are carrying out military action contrary to international law and, finally, the search for a global political solution. Mr President, that is the only way dictatorships can really be weakened and concord between all the peoples of the region promoted. For once, Europe must speak with a European voice! (Applause)

Political group: PSE