A4-0060/98

Resolution on the Commission communication 'The future of relations between the European Union and Russia' and the action plan 'The European Union and Russia: the future relationship' (COM(95)0223 - C4-0217/95 - 6440/96 - C4-0415/96)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission communication (COM(95)0223 - C4-0217/95),

- having regard to the European Union's action plan for Russia (6440/96 - C4-0415/96),

- having regard to the Agreement on partnership and cooperation establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Russian Federation, of the other part ((OJ L 327, 28.11.1997, p. 3.)), which entered into force on 1 December 1997,

- having regard to the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between the Russian Federation and NATO,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Security and Defence Policy and the opinions of the Committee on Committee on Research, Technological Development and Energy, the Committee on External Economic Relations, the Committee on Regional Policy, the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education and the Media and the Committee on Civil Liberties and Internal Affairs (A4-0060/98),

A. whereas Russia has an integral place in the history and culture of Europe,

B. whereas Russia has played an essential, and often formidable, role as the main component of the former Soviet Union, as a permanent member of the Security Council and as a nuclear power; whereas, moreover, Russia must always be considered as a key geostrategic power,

C. having regard to Russia's declared willingness to adopt the values of pluralist democracy, the rule of law and human and minority rights,

D. whereas the European Union and Russia share numerous common interests and responsibilities in matters of foreign policy and security as well as in the environment, the economy and culture,

E. convinced that the stability of the continent of Europe can be brought about by the success of the democratic and economic reform process in the Russian Federation, together with the establishment there of the rule of law and social cohesion,

F. stressing the importance at the present time of all the existing diplomatic instruments, both in the field of bilateral relations with the European Union and in multilateral contexts such as the Council of Europe, the OSCE and even NATO, in making Russia a fully fledged partner in the Euro-Atlantic area,

G. welcoming Russia's admission to the group of the most industrialized countries and to the Paris Club,

H. whereas the development of balanced relations between Russia and the European Union is becoming all the more necessary now that the EU is expanding eastwards; whereas, with this in prospect, it is important not to create another fault line in Europe,

I. whereas the development of close cooperation between the European Union and Russia also must permit the countries in the European part of the CIS to find their place in the new European order, and to find better solutions to cross-border problems, particularly in the Baltic and Black Sea regions,

J. whereas the European Union is now Russia's most important trading partner and whereas Russia has been the main beneficiary of aid from the TACIS programme,

K. whereas the European Energy Charter Treaty - now signed - creates a secure and balanced pan-European framework for cooperation in the energy sector while recognizing the principle of national sovereignty over energy sources,

L. welcoming Russia's desire to have good relations worldwide and, in particular, to settle its territorial disputes with China and Japan, which can only have a beneficial impact on world peace,

M. whereas Russia can play a positive role vis-à-vis the states which originated from the Soviet Union and must make every effort to create a climate of mutual confidence and good neighbourly relations with them, without interfering in their internal affairs,

N. encouraging the process of political and economic reforms which Russia has embarked upon,

O. noting, however, the difficulties which the country is encountering in this transition period, in particular the social inequalities, the level of organized crime and the need to enforce the rule of law,

P. whereas the Presidential Commission for Human Rights, chaired by Vladimir Kartasjkin, recently concluded that human rights standards, although already enacted into law, are not being implemented effectively and that mechanisms to ensure respect for human rights are lacking in Russia,

Q. whereas the European Union can play a positive role in Russia, by opening up its markets and supporting the reforms, though this can only be limited in relation to Russia's enormous needs and huge geographical expanse,

R. whereas the opening up of Russia's markets can bring mutual benefits to the European Union and the Russian Federation, including the an exchange of human and intellectual resources,

S. whereas indigenous peoples' territories cover a significant part of the Russian Federation and further emphasizing the important role of indigenous peoples and their communities for sustainable development as recognized in Agenda 21 and the Convention on Biological Diversity,

T. welcoming the entry into force on 1 December 1997 of the partnership and cooperation agreement which henceforth forms the legal basis necessary for the development of cooperation between the European Union and Russia,

1. Considers that the European Union's strategy towards Russia should be one of the priorities of its action for the future and should concentrate on:

a) consolidating the process of democratization in Russian society by fostering the pivotal role of civil society and the emergence of a middle class to provide a firm base for democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights,

b) developing partnership in all fields, particularly research and development, high technology and the environment, including nuclear safety,

c) opening up its markets to Russian products,

d) strengthening security in Europe and its neighbouring regions on the basis of balanced cooperation,

e) enabling Russia to play a full role in the future of Europe;

Consolidating Russian society

2. Notes that Russia has consistently indicated since 1991, in particular by becoming a member of the Council of Europe, its resolute commitment to the path of pluralist democracy and the rule of law, in spite of the blemishes on its record during this period such as the assault on the Russian Parliament in 1993, the war in Chechnya and the failure to comply with some provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights which was largely due to the lack of long-established democratic traditions;

3. Welcomes the ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights by the Duma and the Council of the Federation, calls upon the Russian Federation to uphold all the provisions of this Convention and to ratify Protocol No 6 thereto which abolishes the death penalty, making official the moratorium which entered into force in August 1996;

4. Points to the progress already made, for example in the elections to the Duma in 1995 and the Federation presidential elections of 1996, which took place under normal democratic conditions; also points to the considerable legislative work undertaken by the Russian authorities, both the executive and the legislature;

5. Calls on the European Union and its Member States, as well as the other Western countries, to give their full support to Russia so as to ensure that the negative phenomena (corruption, mafia practices, political confusion and a fall in production, living standards and life expectancy) which have accompanied the transition are not used by certain political groups to call into question the democratic progress which has been made in Russian political life since 1991;

6. Calls therefore on the Commission, through its TACIS programme for democracy, and on the Council of Europe, to do all in their power to consolidate Russia's still fragile democracy and to continue their cooperation to implement the TACIS democracy programme in order particularly to promote the development of and respect for the principles of the rule of law and to help improve the situation in the prisons and the army;

7. Considers that one of the means of achieving this is to promote exchanges between Russia and the EU of people in leading roles in politics, administration, economic life and social affairs and to help the development of civil society in Russia;

8. Calls in particular on the Commission, in the context of the TACIS programme for democracy, to provide greater financial support for the NGOs which seek to promote civil society in Russia and whose activities may have a multiplier effect, to enable these organizations to continue and step up their work which is so useful at this stage of the political transition;

9. Commits the European Union, too, to developing with the Russian authorities cooperation on matters falling within the scope of the third pillar (all kinds of trafficking, and in particular the trafficking in human beings, money laundering etc.) so as to fight against crime which is on the rise in Russia and also has ramifications extending to the European Union and its neighbouring countries;

10. Calls, in the light of falling life-expectancy and the danger of social disturbances which could destabilize the country, for particular attention to be paid to combating poverty in Russia, to improving health and environmental protection, to the fight against alcoholism, and to a social housing policy, so as to ensure better living conditions for the Russian people;

11. Calls on the Government and the Federal Parliament of the Russian Federation to implement the resolution of the International Conference on Human Rights and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Russia recently held by the Presidential Commission on Human Rights and take all the necessary steps to harmonize Russian Federal laws with internationally accepted standards on human rights and the rights of indigenous peoples;

12. Considers in particular that in the next few years the TACIS programme should accord an important place, alongside its actions in the economic field, to:

- carrying out projects likely to bring significant improvements to the daily life of the people in the sectors most heavily hit by current reforms, such as health, education, safety and housing,

- setting up and efficiently implementing a legal framework within which the rule of law can operate and which accords people and businesses greater legal certainty and confidence in the courts,

- implementing a just and effective tax system which will enable a genuine civic spirit to flourish in the country,

- to assist in strengthening the diversity and freedom of the media, especially television;

13. Stresses the need to monitor carefully the implementation of the law on freedom of conscience and on religious associations which the Duma has adopted, so as to avoid its leading in practice to infringements of religious freedom;

14. Stresses that the fight against regional inequalities, which is primarily the responsibility of the Russian authorities, can be supported by the European Union through its TACIS programme, by means of the partnership and cooperation agreement, and by the EBRD, since the concentration of wealth around Moscow and a few major cities is not calculated to encourage the consolidation of democracy in Russia;

15. Considers in this respect that decentralized implementation of EU programmes and of economic aid to the regions and the development of contacts between the European Union and members of the Russian Federation would be appropriate;

16. Would welcome in particular closer EU cooperation with the Russian Federation in implementing civilian measures for conflict prevention and conflict management in the Russian Federation;

Developing a partnership

17. Calls on the Council and Commission to make the most of all the possibilities opened up by the partnership and cooperation agreement with Russia, including the establishment of a free trade area when conditions are right, to enable the European Union and Russia to create together an area of peace and prosperity;

18. Calls on the Council and the Commission to use the partnership to integrate economic and environmental interests to encourage environmentally sustainable policies and practices in lending and investment projects in such a way as to help integrate environmental concerns into all sectors of society;

19. Notes that Russia possesses all the key factors needed to consolidate democracy, the rule of law and a market economy, in particular a considerable industrial and intellectual capacity which should be exploited in the context of the partnership and cooperation agreement;

20. Considers that this would help raise the living standards of the people and slow down, if not halt, the brain drain from Russia, which not only deprives Russian society but also encourages the dispersal throughout the world of dangerous techniques such as the manufacture of weapons of mass destruction;

21. Calls for joint Euro-Russian projects to be defined in the industrial field, starting with the high technology sector (biology, computers, space, aeronautics, energy, telecommunications) so as to make Russia a fully-fledged partner in these frontier technology sectors;

22. Welcomes, with this in mind, the creation of the International Science and Technology Centre in Moscow, though considering that it can make only a very modest contribution to the problems it is intended to solve;

23. Calls on the Commission to coordinate its activities with the Russian Government to prevent illegal trafficking in fissile material, to improve the safety of Russia's nuclear installations and, where that is not possible, to shut down particularly dangerous reactors;

24. Calls on the European Union and its Member States to devote particular attention to the protection and rehabilitation of the Russian environment, which suffered extreme damage during the Communist period; calls on the European Union to enable Russia to benefit from its know-how in this area and for joint environmental programmes such as 'Cross Border' to be developed and strengthened under the partnership and cooperation agreement in the context of the commitments given at Kyoto;

25. Calls on the Commission to intensify its efforts under the TACIS programme to diversify energy sources in the Russian Federation with the emphasis on promoting renewable energies and combating energy waste, along with improving the safety of nuclear plant;

26. Calls for the prompt ratification by the Russian Parliament of the European Energy Charter Treaty;

27. Welcomes the recent conclusion of an agreement on trade in steel and hopes for productive use of the opportunities afforded by the partnership and cooperation agreement to sign specific agreements of this kind;

28. Calls in particular for further opening of the relevant market, for the benefit of consumers and industry on both sides, provided that both partners are subject to the same provisions and stipulations in terms of competition rules, state aids and environmental protection;

29. Notes that a development of this nature would give European and Russian undertakings a better chance in facing the formidable competition from American, Japanese and other companies, and considers that the other CIS states should be involved in these efforts;

30. Calls on the European Union to provide Russia with technical assistance to enable it to install an effective legal system and one which is favourable to foreign investments;

31. Stresses in particular the importance for undertakings of tax reform and its implementation, and considers it desirable to establish a task force of tax experts to work in close cooperation with the Russian Government;

32. Hopes for more intensive cooperation between the TACIS programme and the EBRD in order to develop a risk capital system favouring small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which will permit the joint funding of micro-projects and thus contribute to the emergence of a dynamic SME sector;

33. Stresses the need for strict supervision also of the funds paid or lent to the Russian Federation;

34. Calls also for the improvement of infrastructures likely to favour trade, particularly trans-European networks linking the countries of the European Union, the CEECs and the Russian Federation;

35. Hopes that the Commission's efforts to open substantive negotiations on the problem of charges to be paid by European airlines overflying Siberia will soon be successful and welcomes the goodwill shown by the Russians in this respect;

36. Hopes that the conditions will be created to enable a global agreement to be concluded between Russia and the EU in the fisheries sector, provided that the legal stipulations concerning the inspection and health control of fisheries products are equivalent for both parties;

37. Urges the Commission, so as to avoid pointless disputes, to work along the same lines employed with the CEECs and study measures and mechanisms which may help increase flexibility not just on paper but also in practice in trade between Russia and the European Union;

38. Supports Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organization (WTO), and hopes the Russian Federation will soon fulfil all the criteria for membership;

39. Calls for strict compliance with the obligation on each partner under the partnership and cooperation agreement to consult the other partner before taking measures which will have adverse effects on their trade relations;

40. Stresses that the EU's general anti-dumping rules are fully in line with WTO principles; at the same time welcomes the Commission's recent proposals aimed at adjusting the procedures of the anti-dumping policy to the particular conditions of the Russian economy;

41. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to make known the rich cultural heritage of Russia, with all its ethnic diversity, by organizing cultural cooperation programmes and promoting joint cultural events and twinning arrangements between towns and regions;

42. Stresses the importance of formal and informal contacts in all fields in improving mutual understanding and promoting a climate of confidence between the Russia and its EU partners;

43. Calls on the Council and the Commission to strengthen the regular political dialogue on CFSP matters with Russia in order to promote cooperation and joint actions in this field;

Strengthening security in Europe on the basis of mutual cooperation

44. Notes, in view of the geographical proximity of all the countries on the continent of Europe, that the security of the European peoples forms an indivisible whole and that this security depends to a very large extent on relations between the European Union and Russia;

45. Calls at the outset, with a view to closer cooperation in the security sphere, for all possibilities offered by the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation to be used to help create a more stable, peaceful and undivided Europe, where the inviolability of existing borders, human rights and the rights of minorities are respected;

46. Further proposes that the EU/WEU, NATO, and the Russian Federation should continue to develop close links between their respective parliamentary bodies, political leaders and military high commands and that they should continue to cooperate in peacekeeping operations and the development of Partnership for Peace initiatives;

47. Notes that such a development should not in any way affect the rights or obligations of the Member States of the European Union participating in NATO;

48. Hopes that the European Union itself will develop security relations with Russia complementing the relations which it will then seek to develop with the United States in a bilateral framework or under the auspices of NATO;

49. Notes that Russia retains a considerable nuclear and conventional military potential; hopes that Russia will continue on the course of ratifying a series of arms control and reduction agreements; in this light, looks to Russia to ratify the START II agreement on reducing nuclear arsenals and embark upon START III, and to review its position on anti-personnel landmines and sign the Ottawa Convention;

50. Wishes an overall strategic discussion to take place between the European Union and Russia, in which the responsibilities of each side in the security system of the European continent will gradually be defined and stresses the importance of working closely with the OSCE - whilst at the same time encouraging reform of that organization so as to increase its capacity for action and the effectiveness of its initiatives - and the UN on regional security, conflict prevention and peacekeeping issues;

Defining the new European order

51. Stresses the need, over and above security issues, to map out a new structure for pan-European cooperation following events since 1989 and in connection with the European Union's forthcoming enlargement to include the CEECs;

52. Considers that the enlargement of the European Union to include the CEECs, which is a highly desirable objective, must not place Russia and its neighbouring countries behind a new 'curtain' nor create a new division between the countries of Central Europe which join the EU and those which do not;

53. In this light recognizes the important role of the EU/Russia Joint Parliamentary Committee in achieving improved understanding and a reinforced partnership between the European Union and the Russian Federation;

54. Considers that, in order to make a success of this new order, it is essential to ensure that relations between the major political and economic entities on the international stage are as balanced as possible;

55. Welcomes the signing of the border agreement between Russia and Lithuania and hopes that similar agreements will soon be concluded with the other sovereign Baltic states (Estonia and Latvia); also welcomes the Treaty signed by Russia and Ukraine on 31 May 1997;

56. Considers that the European Union must develop special links with a democratic Russia going beyond the partnership and cooperation agreement and would like such links to be able to evolve subsequently in the context of reinforced cooperation arrangements so as to consolidate and guarantee peace and security worldwide;

57. Stresses that a reinforcement of the partnership with Russia needs at the same time a reinforcement of the European Union common foreign and security policy (CFSP);

58. Calls on the Commission, the Council and the Member States to reconsider the new situation arising for Europe from the events of 1989 and the disappearance of the Soviet Union in 1991 and to take account of the new balance on the continent which may establish itself between the European Union and Russia, so as to stabilize Europe in a climate of confidence, peace and strengthened cooperation;

59. Calls for better coordination between the respective positions and roles of the existing European organizations, in particular the OSCE and the Council of Europe, which should act as a link between the two parts of the continent;

60. Stresses the importance of the northern dimension of the policies of the Union and calls for intensive cooperation with Russia in the framework of the Council of the Baltic Sea States, the Barents Euro-Arctic Council and the Arctic Council;

61. Stresses that it is not enough to open western, and particularly European, organizations to Russia but that new links must be forged, including new structures, which take account of the entirely new active role which Russia is destined to play;

62. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and Council, the Government and Parliament of the Russian Federation and, for information, to NATO, the WEU, the OSCE and the Council of Europe.