A4-0106/98

European Parliament recommendation to the Council on a post-SFOR strategy in Bosnia -Herzegovina

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the proposal for a recommendation to the Council by Mrs Lalumière on behalf of the ARE Group on a post-SFOR strategy in Bosnia-Herzegovina (B4-1103/97),

- having regard to Article J.7, second paragraph, of the EU Treaty,

- having regard to Rule 46 (3) of its Rules of Procedure,

- having regard to the conclusions of the Peace Implementation Conference on Bosnia-Herzegovina which took place in Bonn on 9/10 December 1997,

- having regard to the final communiqué of the meeting of NATO Defence Ministers on 2 December 1997 and of NATO Foreign Affairs Ministers on 16 December 1997,

- having regard to the new provisions of the Amsterdam Treaty with regard to the EU's security policy (Article J.7, formerly J.4),

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Security and Defence Policy (A4-0106/98),

A. whereas the Bonn Peace Implementation Conference of 9/10 December 1997 concluded that there is no alternative to the Peace Agreement for Bosnia-Herzegovina and to the establishment of sustainable peace in the entire region,

B. noting that considerable progress has been made in implementing peace and stability in Bosnia-Herzegovina but that a huge effort is still needed to achieve the ultimate goal of making peace self-sustaining, and that further progress is required to build functioning governmental and administrative structures, to further democratization, to ensure the adequate protection of human rights, a police force that operates effectively and openly and the rule of law, to establish proper management of the economy - including the fight against corruption and tax evasion - and to complete successfully the return of refugees and displaced persons,

C. convinced that further assistance by the EU and the international community must remain conditional upon compliance with the Peace Agreement and subsequent obligations,

D. recognizing that the presence of IFOR and later SFOR has been the greatest single contribution to sub-regional security since the signing of the Peace Agreement and will continue to be so in the short to medium term, if the pace of implementation of the civilian aspects of the Dayton Agreement is still so slow,

E. stating that the civil implementation has been seriously endangered by the 'public security gap¨, owing to the high degree of separation of roles between the military and the civilian parts of the Bosnian peace operation,

F. wishing to improve the consistency, quality, impact and visibility of the EU engagement in Bosnia-Herzegovina,

G. welcoming the emerging consensus on the need for the presence of a military peace-keeping force to continue beyond June 1998 indicated by NATO's plans to consider options for a multinational follow-on force to SFOR beyond June 1998,

H. whereas the provisions of the new Amsterdam Treaty make a common European security action for Bosnia-Herzegovina possible on the basis of Article J.7, second paragraph, on the Petersberg tasks and Article J.13 on the rule of constructive abstentions,

1. Recommends the Council:

a) to decide in the spirit of the provisions of the new Amsterdam Treaty, which refers to peace-keeping and peace-making tasks in crisis management, on a joint action for active EU participation in a multinational follow-on force to SFOR beyond June 1998,

b) to take such a decision and to ask the WEU to coordinate the military efforts of EU Member States within a NATO-led post-SFOR operation,

c) to take such a decision with a view to making European commitment to peace building and reconstruction in Bosnia-Herzegovina, on the basis of the Dayton Agreement, more consistent and visible,

d) to take into account that the mandate for any follow-on force should provide appropriate support to civil implementation while being readily available and effective enough to respond quickly to events on the ground in and across Bosnia-Herzegovina, and furthermore should include a substantial expansion of the number of UN-IPTF (police) personnel, also with the objective of training local police forces,

(e) to ensure the continuity and to make better use of the mandate for the European Community Monitoring Mission (ECMM) which plays an important role below the military level for the civil implementation effort and which is the only organizational force on the ground denoting an EU presence; asks the Council in this respect to make an overall evaluation of the role and the experience of the ECMM so far and to report to the European Parliament,

f) to continue its ban on arms transfers to the former Yugoslavia, to appeal for a policy of moderation on the part of arms exporting countries and to urge the respective governments, especially the United States, to reconsider their intentions of rearming the Bosnian factions; believes that any rearmament that would encourage further military action must be avoided at all cost,

g) immediately to persuade all decision-makers in Bosnia-Herzegovina to ban forthwith the production of mines in Bosnia-Herzegovina as well as their export,

h) to ensure that the multinational follow-on force is mandated to apprehend persons indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and to assist in locating and excavating mass graves, as well as in the safe return of refugees and displaced persons, and in the protection of minorities and vulnerable groups in all areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

2. Instructs its President to forward this recommendation to the Council and Commission.