WRITTEN QUESTION E-3207/00 by Marie-Arlette Carlotti (PSE) and Francisca Sauquillo Pérez del Arco (PSE) to the Commission. European Union aid to Cuba.
Date: 2000-10-17
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Cuba, ECHO, EU aid, human rights, suspension of aid

C 163 E/60

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

6.6.2001

to register as
The International Cycling Union has for no reason refused Amore & Vita the right
a professional world-class team. A legal dispute with the ICU on the matter has been pending for months.
The team has therefore been unable to participate in international events such as the Giro d(cid:146)Italia, in which
it had previously taken part for 15 consecutive years, and it has now been prevented from taking part in
the Giro di Lucca, a multi-stage cycling race held on the sports group(cid:146)s home ground and where the team
therefore has the greatest number of sponsors and fans.

Can the Council say what immediate measures it intends to take vis-(cid:224)-vis the International Cycling Union
to enable the aforementioned company and sports group to register in the appropriate manner, thereby
defending the sporting spirit and young cyclists, rather than the bureaucratic face of the ICU?

Does the Council not consider that the International Cycling Union(cid:146)s failure to register Amore & Vita and
to provide due justification for such action would seem to indicate retaliation on the part of the ICU for
Ivano Fanini(cid:146)s condemnations of doping in cycling and his anti-doping campaigns?

Does the Council not also consider that this situation has greatly damaged the families of the thirty racing
cyclists from Italy and other EU countries, not to mention the sports company which manages the team
and which, unable to participate in the main races, is losing its key sponsors and the chance to allow its
sports group to continue competing in future years?

Reply

(26 February 2001)

The case to which the Honourable Member refers does not
competence.

fall within the sphere of Community

The Council is nevertheless aware of the importance of the continuous struggle against doping in sport. In
that regard it would refer to the Resolution of the Council and of the representatives of the Governments
of the Member States, meeting within the Council, adopted in 1992 (92/C44/01), which approves a code
of conduct against doping in sport and calls on, among others, athletes, those forming the entourage of
sportsmen and women (managers, trainers, coaches, etc.), national and international sports organisations
and the media to apply the code of conduct in their sports activities.

The Council would also remind the Honourable Member that the European Council which met in Nice on
7, 8 and 9 December 2000 welcomed the Council conclusions concerning the World Anti-Doping Agency
and agreed to intensify European cooperation in this area.

(2001/C 163 E/059)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3207/00

by Marie-Arlette Carlotti (PSE)
and Francisca Sauquillo PØrez del Arco (PSE) to the Commission

Subject: European Union aid to Cuba

(17 October 2000)

The Commission(cid:146)s decision to discontinue ECHO aid to Cuba means in practice that the country will suffer
a reduction in aid of € 17 to 6 million in the year 2000.

In addition, the new policy of approval for development projects for Cuba (using the (cid:145)Call for proposal(cid:146)
formula) presented by the Commission could limit the field of cooperation considerably by restricting it to
human rights and support for economic and legal reforms.

How does the Commission explain this hardening in its interpretation of
of December 1996 and the decision to limit the extent of its aid to Cuba?

the common position

6.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 163 E/61

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(8 January 2001)

Commission co-operation with Cuba has, until now, relied for the most part on humanitarian aid funding.
As the circumstances that triggered the Humanitarian Office (ECHO) intervention in Cuba have changed,
the Commission intends to adapt its Commission cooperation to the new realities. ECHO(cid:146)s activities are
being discontinued and replaced by other instruments, so that each of these instruments can be used
according to its own objectives. This implies modifying the relative weight of different instruments used
(NGO) co-financing and
for cooperation with Cuba,
economic cooperation activities. It is foreseen that the global amount of Commission cooperation in
2000 will be similar to that of 1999 (€ 15-16 million in 2000, € 17,7 million in 1999).

increasing the importance of non-governmental

The Commission has not changed its interpretation of the common position since its approval in 1996,
nor is there an intention to decrease cooperation with Cuba. The common position is the basis of
everything the Commission does in Cuba. It is precisely for this reason that the Commission has decided to
issue a call for proposals, explaining this, and ensuring that operations carried out by NGOs fit into this
agreed framework.

(2001/C 163 E/060)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3220/00

by Mary Honeyball (PSE) to the Commission

(17 October 2000)

Subject: Development of the Akamas, Cyprus

Will the Commission comment on the Cyprus Government(cid:146)s pending decision to allow the development of
the Akamas Peninsular for tourism and assess whether such a decision is compatible with the European
Union(cid:146)s Natura 2000 environmental policy?

Will the Commission say how this issue is being tackled during accession negotiations?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(23 November 2000)

As indicated in its reply to Written Question E-2905/00 of Mr Davies (1), the Commission is following
closely the issue of the Akamas peninsula through the various means at its disposal, which include the
chapter of the accession negotiations relating to the environment, on-going technical contacts with the
Cypriot authorities on environmental questions, and the various pre-accession instruments, such as the
regular report on progress towards accession. The Commission gave a detailed briefing on the Akamas
issue to the Community/Cyprus Joint Parliamentary Committee on 10 October 2000.

In March 2000 the Cypriot authorities took certain interim decisions intended to provide for sustainable
management of the Akamas peninsula. The authorities have informed the Commission that final decisions
would be taken after a dialogue with the interested parties, taking account of the relevant Community
acquis, and international and national obligations.

As part of the preparations for accession in relation to the environment, Cyprus will, in respect of the
habitats directive, Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992, on the conservation of natural habitats
and of wild fauna and flora (2), present a list of proposed sites to be designated as special areas of
conservation for inclusion in the Natura 2000 network. The proposal will include a clear definition of the
boundaries of the areas in question. A project under the LIFE programme, which is assisting the Cypriot