WRITTEN QUESTION E-0429/01

by Raffaele Lombardo (PPE-DE) to the Council

(20 February 2001)

Subject: Effective and timely action to ascertain and combat the effects of the use of uranium- and plutonium-enriched projectiles

In view of the strong sense of loyalty shown by the countries belonging to NATO and their genuine shared support for the ideas, aims and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter to which they are all committed, and given the recent alarm caused by unanswered questions surrounding the death of a number European soldiers who had taken part in peace-keeping operations in the former Yugoslavia, can the Council say:

- whether it considers it necessary, in accordance with the principles of transparency and full cooperation, to find out from the relevant NATO authorities, as a matter of urgency, exactly where uranium- and plutonium-enriched explosive projectiles were used, as well as to ask for the full disclosure of the technical data relating to the manufacture of such weapons;

- whether it intends actively to support the holding of an international inquiry into the use of and the effects of deadly weapons of this sort, in view of the expert evidence provided by specialised UN bodies and various regional organisations;

- whether it considers it necessary to impose a strict moratorium on the use of uranium-enriched projectiles, as called for by the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, until such time as scientists have cleared up the doubts that exist about the harm they cause or established that they do in fact pose a danger to human health;

- whether it intends to extend the remit of such an inquiry to include the effects of the attacks on and the destruction of industrial sites during bombing missions which led to the release into the environment of numerous toxic substances;

- whether it is prepared to undertake a timely and detailed epidemiological survey of the civilian population and the military personnel who have been exposed to radiation;

- whether it is prepared to clean up the environments which have been contaminated, starting with grazing land and water resources in the areas affected?

Reply

(10 July 2001)

During the discussion on the occasion of the meeting of the Council (General Affairs) of 22 January 2001, Ministers called for full transparency and open exchange of information between the authorities of the Member States, as well as with other organisations investigating the use of depleted uranium in munitions. There was general agreement that in the first instance it was for NATO, as the institution organising crisis management in Balkans, to assemble the information from participants on the use of depleted uranium, on the locations of troops and on medical data.

The Council, on 9 April 2001 had an exchange of views on the issue of depleted uranium munitions in the light of scientific evidence compiled by various international organisations.

At the end of this exchange of views, the President summarised the discussion thus:

- The Council notes the work by various international organisations (UNEP, WHO, NATO, Ad hoc Group of experts set up by the Commission) on the possible health and environmental impact of exposure to depleted uranium in ammunition used in the Balkans.

- In these detailed and objective examinations, there exists no scientific evidence to link the use of depleted uranium with various illnesses suffered in the population or among those who served in conflict areas.

- However, due to the apparent health and environmental problems in the region the Council should remain committed to following possible further investigations closely and re-examining the issue if appropriate at a future stage.

- The Commission is already addressing some of the environmental problems in the regions through ongoing projects. The Council encourages the Commission to take into account findings from the reports on depleted uranium, as well as the overall situation concerning environment and health issues, as the Commission draws up new country strategy papers for all the countries in the Western Balkans.