Mr President, I agree that Valencia was a success – and I agree with Mr Piqué that the very fact the meeting took place was an achievement. I had the honour of being the leader of the European Parliament delegation, and I have to say that the debate at the Conference was fierce and there were some very difficult moments, but the agreement on the action plan and – called for, of course, by the European Parliament – the endorsement of the idea of the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly and the Foundation for intercultural dialogue are certainly achievements: on the basis of all this, we can say that, despite the tragic situation in the Middle East, it may well be possible for things to go a little better after Valencia. In any case, the foundations have been laid for reinvigoration of the cooperation process in the Mediterranean region. As I see it, Israel has many enemies to defeat before it can live in security and peace. As has already been said, the greatest of these enemies is certainly anti-Semitism, and we, the European Union and the European Parliament, are at the forefront of the battle against this terrible scourge that has been striking even just recently, here, in our Member States, with shameful attacks. Another enemy is terrorism, and here too we are right behind Israel in combating all forms of terrorism, including the – appalling – series of suicide attacks. There is a certain amount of ambiguity regarding this point in certain Arab parties and countries, with people saying that the fight against Nazi Fascism in Europe was a rebellion too. It is true that it was a rebellion but I would point out – apart from the fact that the comparison is inappropriate – that resistance to Nazi Fascism never involved attacks on civilians: killing civilians is not a form of martyrdom – as has been said – it is terrorism. Israel’s third enemy is certainly the refusal hitherto of many countries to recognise its existence or to maintain appropriate relations with the country. The Saudi peace plan represents a considerable opportunity from this point of view. Israel’s fourth enemy – I would like to point out – is its – great – mistrust of the European Union. If ever there may have been some explanation for this mistrust in the past, it is now totally unacceptable; there is absolutely no reason for it. It is precisely in the European Union and its principles and policies that Israel has a friend and ally: in refusing to accept this friendship and support, the Israeli Government is making a huge mistake. Lastly, another enemy of Israel – and this is my personal opinion – is the Sharon Government and its policies: both its symbolic and its practical actions. The Israeli people have a clear responsibility to assess the damage done by Mr Sharon’s transformation of the justified fight against terrorism into the disproportionate, excessive use of force, by his dissemination of the idea that it is possible to defeat terrorism and break out of the crisis using military force, by the way he has treated the representative of the Palestinian National Authority as if he were the leader of the terrorists, imprisoning him and then accusing him of doing nothing to stop the terrorism, by his failure to acknowledge the objective of two States and two peoples, by his failure to specify a clear date for withdrawal from all the occupied territories. These are all positions of the Sharon Government which have placed Israel in difficulties, and they certainly do nothing to further the advent of peace or – consequently – a secure future for Israel. Finally, Israel’s security does not depend on the number of tanks occupying the territory but on the undertaking of the international community, and Madrid – the quartet, as Mr Piqué said – is the most important development. This new opportunity now exists and must be used to initiate – as Javier Solana said – fresh, brief talks that will lead to a peace that is stable and lasting for both the Palestinian and the Israeli people and for the entire Mediterranean region as well. We must do something to give the young people of the region the hope, at last, of a future of peace and security. (Applause)

Political group: PSE