A4-0160/96

Resolution on the Commission communication on perspectives for international cooperation in research and technological development (COM(95)0489 - C4-0502/95)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission communication on perspectives for international cooperation in research and technological development (COM(95)0489 - C4-0502/95),

- having regard to the Green Paper on innovation (COM(95)0688 - C4-0609/95),

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Research, Technological Development and Energy and the opinions of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Security and Defence Policy, the Committee on External Economic Relations and the Committee on Development and Cooperation (A4-0160/96),

A. whereas it is the responsibility of the EU to create a stable environment within an enlarged Europe, in particular by means of a research policy conducted in cooperation with third countries, and to contribute to sustainable economic growth in developing countries,

B. whereas, as regards cooperation between the EU and third countries, a clear distinction should be made between scientific and technical cooperation on the one hand, and technological development on the other,

C. whereas the exchange of knowledge and technological development cooperation require firm agreements as regards intellectual and industrial property, with due respect for mutual and reciprocal interests,

D. having regard to the need to ensure satisfactory communication between scientists to enable them to pool their knowledge with a particular view to the development of mega-science, for example in the fields of genome research, particle physics or the observation of the universe,

E. whereas the ultimate objective in this area is to identify, secure recognition for and maintain, by means of the common R& D policy, the EU's fields of excellence in terms of basic research and the exchange of enabling technologies; whereas such cooperation is also intended to enable the EU to increase its market share by means of a properly targeted RTD policy based on balanced partnerships, which will ensure that lasting links with third countries are established on the basis of reciprocity and mutual interest,

1. Calls on the Commission to take into account the distinction between international, scientific and technical cooperation and technological development for industrial and commercial purposes, with due regard for the necessary interaction between these two kinds of activity;

2. Calls for a distinction to be made between objectives aimed at:

(a) the dissemination of knowledge,

(b) the preparation of innovative and enabling technologies;

3. Calls for international scientific cooperation to undertake in-depth research in all areas of knowledge and to encourage the sense of discovery;

4. Calls for this scientific cooperation between academic researchers or those belonging to national research institutes to relate to fields which are areas of excellence for the EU, for example mathematics, particle physics, optronics, nanotechnologies, molecular biology and ecosystems;

5. Calls on the Commission to develop an active intellectual and industrial property protection policy by means of international agreements between the EU and each third country on the basis of balanced partnerships, with due respect for mutual and reciprocal interests;

6. Calls for the reciprocity principle to be applied as strictly as possible, thus allowing, in particular, EU companies to take advantage of government RTD programmes in the USA, Japan and the emerging countries of south-east Asia, and, as they develop, in Central Europe, the Baltic States and the NIS;

7. Calls for the free movement of, the exchange of or trade in innovative and enabling technologies to be promoted, along with technological cooperation between businesses, in particular SMEs, in the context of balanced partnerships;

8. Calls on the Commission to give greater consideration to consistency and complementarity between RTD policy and other Union policies, particularly competition policy, especially in the light of the WTO regulations and with a view to future international negotiations on competition;

9. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the intelligent manufacturer system (IMS) research programme does not duplicate the work of the technological development cooperation programmes;

10. Calls for the major transverse projects and the major targeted projects to be identified with a view to improve the general situation of the EU and the partner third countries by devoting particular attention to energy production (in particular renewable energies), energy efficiency, transport, new information and communication technologies, environmental protection and climatology;

11. Calls for the arrangements to be determined for cooperation in the development and use of very large items of equipment: LHC (Large Hadron Collider), VLT (Very Large Telescope), etc.;

12. Calls for the establishment, following the example of the EU-CERN Convention (European Organization for Nuclear Research), of coordinated interconnections with other European bodies;

13. Calls for major targeted projects to be proposed relating to for example, earth and space observation, telecommunications and the multimedia, renewable energy sources and biology (in particular research into genomes and agri-foodstuffs);

14. Calls for the possibilities to be examined for RTD cooperation aimed at developing mass-market high-technology products and innovative products with extra added value;

15. Calls for provision to be made for scientific and technical watch exchanges when scientific cooperation agreements with third countries are finalized, in particular by means of electronic networks, with due respect for the rules on intellectual property, particularly in cases where agreements have been concluded in the past;

16. Calls, for each major area of cooperation and irrespective of the framework for that cooperation, for a small, operational technical steering committee to be set up on the Commission's initiative, to be composed of experts from the Member States concerned and partners from the third country/countries; if the Commission ensures that the size of the committee is kept within manageable limits, such a measure will allow greater mutual understanding of the objectives and practicalities of scientific and technical cooperation, and will also ensure that the mutual interests of those involved in the cooperation projects are protected;

17. Calls for steps to be taken to encourage new risk capital and development capital financial engineering measures, particularly in respect of scientific and technical cooperation leading to the development of products or processes with industrial or commercial applications: a European version of NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) should be considered;

18. Calls for the EU's scientific and technical cooperation and technological development policy to be the subject, on the basis of recommendations from CREST (Scientific and Technical Research Committee), of a prospective evaluation carried out by the IPTS (Institute for S& T Forecasting, in Seville) in association with the ESTA (European Science and Technology Assembly) and the ETAN (European Technology Assessment Network); better- structured links should be established between these various bodies and the European Parliament (in particular STOA - Scientific and Technological Options Assessment);

19. Calls on the Commission to specify the arrangements for scientific and technical collaboration by distinguishing between association, cooperation and assistance and between:

(a) countries applying for EU membership, which are covered by association agreements;

(b) industrialized countries which are covered by cooperation agreements;

(c) developing countries, distinguishing between countries with an emerging economy and those which are still in serious difficulty and require assistance;

20. Calls, therefore, on the Commission to include specific RTD provisions in bilateral cooperation agreements and to conclude specific RTD cooperation agreements;

21. Also calls on the Commission to develop a consistent policy for the selection of specific projects open to cooperation with partners from third countries;

22. Calls on the Commission, in respect of the best-targeted projects, to map out a 'Europe of competences' specifying the scientific and technical skills available in each of the EU Member States and the third countries with a view to identifying possible, and the most promising, complementarities;

23. Believes that, in order to increase stability and security in Europe, it is essential for the Union to strengthen scientific and technological cooperation with its neighbouring countries, gearing it to the specific needs of each country and ensuring that it contributes to peace and stability;

24. Believes that cooperation with associated Central and Eastern European and Baltic countries should aim to support the pre-accession phase by bringing them closer to the Union through gradual economic integration; because of major difficulties in nuclear safety and environmental pollution, scientific cooperation in these areas should also be intensified;

25. Believes that in order to bring peace and stability to the Mediterranean, scientific and technological cooperation should focus on areas which contribute to the improvement of living standards and respect the principle of sustainable development; dialogue between the Union, Member States and the Mediterranean partner countries should be intensified to identify joint research objectives based on problems common to the region and support should also be given to south-south cooperation and integration in order to strengthen regional research and technological development capacities;

26. Believes that in order to contribute to development within a regional framework, dialogue with the Latin American countries and the MERCOSUR institutions should be stepped up; in addition, scientific and technological cooperation for development must be increased within the United Nations, in particular via the agreement signed with UNESCO;

27. Believes that international scientific and technological cooperation must be in step with the Union's external policy objectives and that better coordination is therefore needed between the EU's external policies and its research policy instruments;

28. Believes that because of its importance to economic development, cooperation in the area of research and technological development should be offered in all appropriate cases with agreements on financial and technical cooperation with developing countries: the principle of reciprocity cannot of course be fully applied to agreements with developing countries, but should be taken into consideration as far as possible;

29. Believes that in this connection, the areas of greatest concern to developing countries, such as food-supply, health, environment protection and energy should be taken into consideration, and useful applications in the countries or regions concerned should be assured; stresses that rules applicable in the EU to environmental acceptability and the protection of life and health must not be undercut when projects are implemented in developing countries;

30. Believes that depending on the scope and intensity of the socio-economic impact, efforts should be made to secure participation by (representatives of) affected groups at the planning stage;

31. Believes that, in order to secure efficient use of staff, resources and installations, cooperation should, in particular where it applies to problems common to the different countries concerned, as far as possible be organized regionally;

32. Considers that involving local experts at an early stage and securing their commitment to research activities and the development of technologies should ensure that solutions and procedures appropriate to the needs of developing countries will be chosen;

33. Considers that, in view of the low level of funds available, coordination of activities between the EU and the Member States will be crucial;

34. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the Council.