2. Calls on the Commission to incorporate a strictly time-limited review clause in the Regulation, so
that the maximum 1% content can be reviewed within 12 months in the light of relevant scientific andtechnical studies or opinions; calls further for such review to examine and where necessary improve thescope and operation of all related legislation on GM foodstuffsand derivatives, taking account also of thecompatibility of this legislation with European rules on seeds;
3. Calls on the Commission to come forward with a proposal for a negative list concerning products
andingredientsinwhichDNAandproteinfromgeneticallymodifiedorganismsisconsiderednolongertobe present as foreseen in the draft regulation;
4. StronglycallsontheCommissiontoproposethatinsuchahighlysensitiveandcontroversialareaas
GM food regulation and labelling, the codecision procedure should apply to the adoption of these mea-sures;
5. Calls on the Commission to come forward rapidly with proposals for the labelling of GMOs in ani-
mal feed and products derived from animals reared on GMO feed;
6. Calls on the Commissionto clarify the definition of ‘adventitious’ in this regulation;7. Callsonthe Commissiontoclarify how thisregulation will apply topre-packed productscontaining
GMOs imported into the European Union;
8. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commissionand Council.
23. Situation in Chechnya
B5-0326, 0330, 0331, 0332 and 0360/1999
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Chechnya
The European Parliament,
7dash having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Chechnya and in particular its resolution
of 18 November 1999(1),
7dash having regard to its assent of 30 November 1995 to the conclusion of an Agreement on Partnership
and Co-operation between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and
the Russian Federation, of the other part(2), its assent of 11 June 1997 to the conclusion of the Pro-
tocol to the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement between the European Communities and theirMember Statesandthe Russian Federation(
3) andtothe CommonStrategy ofthe European Unionon
Russia, adopted by the Council in June 1999,
7dash having regard to the EU Council Presidency’s fact-finding mission to Ingushetia on 30 October 1999,7dash having regard to the declaration of the European Council in Helsinki of 10 December 1999,7dash having regard to the OSCE Istanbul Summit Declaration,7dash havingregardtoitsdecisiontopostponeitsopinionontheAgreementwithRussiaonCooperationin
the areas of Science and Technology, given the events in Chechnya,
(1) Texts adopted of that sitting, Item 15.
(2) OJ C 339, 18.12.1995, p. 45.
(3) OJ C 200, 30.6.1997, p. 66.C 296/124 EN18.10.2000 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 15 December 1999
A. deeply concerned by the further escalation of the armed conflict in Chechnya and in particular the
increasing numberofvictimsamongthecivilian populationaswellastheever worseningsituationofthe civilian population still remaining in Chechnya,
B. outraged at the intense bombardmentsof Chechen villages and cities and the unacceptable ultimatum
given by the Russian military to all remaining civilians in Grozny who are mainly children, disabled
and elderly people, who have neither the means nor the strength to leave the city,
C. having regard tothe importantrole ofthe Russian Federation in geostrategic stability and security far
beyond the region,
D. stressing the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation and its right to fight terrorism whilst recal-
ling at the same time the obligations of the Russian Federation, not only under the Partnership and
CooperationAgreement but alsoasa member ofthe UN Security Council, the Council ofEurope andthe OSCE, to respect democratic values and human rights,
E. concerned that international relief agencies have still no safe access to the area even though Russia
had committed itself to facilitating such access during the OSCE summit,
F. considering that the war in Chechnya is seriously endangering democracy and the rule of law in the
Russian Federation, as it is already heavily influencing the electoral campaign for the elections to theDuma,
1. Stronglycondemnsthe ongoing Russian military action against civilians in Chechnya andinparticu-
lar the ultimatum directed against the thousands of remaining inhabitants of Grozny, treating them as
hostages;
2. Expects Russia to honour its commitments under international law, to call for an immediate cease-
fire, tostopimmediately anyfurther military actionandwithdraw the ultimatum,tofacilitate safedeliveryofhumanitarianaidtotheregion,tosearchforanegotiatedpoliticalsolutiontotheconflictwhilststartinga dialogue with the elected representatives of Chechnya; notes that Russia has to respect international lawand democratic values if she wants to be recognised as a full and respected member of the internationalcommunity;
3. CallsontheChechenauthoritiestorespecttherulesandprinciplesofhumanitarianlaw,tocondemn
terrorism,topreventterroristactivities,andtocontributetotheliberationofallremaininghostagesandtoa negotiated peaceful solution of the conflict;
4. Expresses its firm belief that the present campaign and the unacceptable threat to the people of
Grozny can only perpetuate, and not break, the cycle of violence in the Caucasus region;
5. Welcomes the proposalby the Council totransfer fundsfromTACIS tohumanitarian assistance and
invites the Council and the Commission to make the necessary financial proposal and to check upon theviability and absorption capacity in the neighbouring regions and Georgia;
6. Welcomes the suspension of some of the provisions of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement;
7. UrgestheCommissionandtheCounciltomaintainthepoliticaldialoguewiththeRussianFederation
and welcomes the planned meeting between EU High Representative Solana and Russian Foreign MinisterIvanov;
8. Calls on other international organisations, and in particular the IMF, to use the means at their dis-
posaltocontributetoapeacefulsolutionofthecrisisandinparticular urgestheOSCEandtheCouncilof
Europe tourge Russiatohonourtheobligationslinkedtoitsmembershiportoconsiderthereview ofthe
status of Russia in these organisations;
9. Repeats itsproposaltoorganise jointlywith theOSCE aCaucasusStability Conference forallparties
concerned in order to contribute to the creation of a conflict prevention forum to solve the problems ofthe region;18.10.2000 EN C 296/125 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 15 December 1999
10. Invites its ad-hoc delegation monitoring the elections to the Duma on 19 December 1999 to take
thisopportunitytouseitsinfluence withtheRussianauthorities andinparticular theDumaparliamentar-ians to contribute to a swift political solution of the conflict and to convey the message that Russia’scurrent way of dealing with the Chechen problem is unacceptable to any democratic country;
11. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Council of
Europe, the OSCE, the Secretary General of the United Nations, the Russian State Duma and the FederalCouncil and the authorities in Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia.
24. OSCE summit in Istanbul
B5-0315, 0320, 0321, 0322 and 0324/1999
European Parliament resolution on the OSCE
The European Parliament,
7dash having regard to the Final Declaration of the OSCE at the Istanbul Summit on 19 November 1999,7dash having regard to the adoption of the European Security Charter on 19 November 1999,7dash having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Kosovoand in Central Asia,7dash having regard to its previous resolutionson the OSCE, EU conflict prevention and the European Civil
Peace Corps,
7dash having regard to the two OSCE reports on the situation of human rights in Kosovo issued in Vienna
and Pristina on 6 December 1999,
A. recognising the importance of the role of the OSCE for achieving democratic and peaceful develop-
ment in Europe,
B. underliningtheimportanceoftheadoptionoftheEuropeanSecurityCharterinstrengtheningsecurity
and stability in Europe,
C. welcoming the decision to establish a taskforce to develop Rapid Expert Assistant and Cooperation
Teams(REACT)toenabletheOSCEtorespondquicklytodemandsforcivilian assistance,andhopingthat the taskforce will sooncome up with more details concerning its implementation, particularly asregards its cost, staffing requirements, and commitments on the part of OSCE participating states,
D. concerned by continuing instability in Kosovo, in particular concerning minorities,E. preoccupied by the lack of democracy in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the difficulties
encountered in the implementation of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia andHerzegovina,
F. recognising the important role played by neighbouring countries which function as stabilising factors
in the Balkans,
G. concernedbytheincrease ininternationalterrorism,violentextremism,organisedcrime anddrugand
arms trafficking in Central Asia with very negative consequences in the Caucasus,
H. sharing the OSCE’s concerns about finding a peaceful settlement to the Trans-Dniestrian problem as
well as other crises,
I. underliningtheneedfortheOSCEtoworkwithotherorganisationsandinstitutionswithcoordinated
approaches in order to avoid duplication,C 296/126 EN18.10.2000 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 15 December 1999