European Parliament resolution on anti-personnel landmines
Date: 2000-10-25
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: anti-personnel weapon, disarmament, explosive, financing, non-proliferation of arms

12.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 197/193

(cid:1) establishing a three-month time-period for each of the above procedures;

(cid:1) establishing a one-year time-period for reconsideration should the outcome of the proposal, the assent

procedure or the decision be negative;

Wednesday 25 October 2000

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20.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Intergovernmental Conference for the
Reform of the Treaties, the Council, the Commission, and the governments and parliaments of the Member
States and the applicant countries.

9. Status of Islands

B5-0808/2000

European Parliament resolution on Article 158 of the EC Treaty with regard to the status of
islands

The European Parliament,

A. whereas the various language versions of the second paragraph of Article 158 of the EC Treaty differ
substantially with regard to the way islands are treated in the context of economic and social cohe-
sion, and whereas some versions of the Treaty refer to ‘least-favoured islands’ while others simply refer
to ‘islands’,

B. having regard to Declaration 30, Declaration on island regions, annexed to the Final Act of Amster-

dam,

C. whereas Article 154 incorporates unambiguously in the EC Treaty the spirit and the letter of Declara-

tion 30,

Calls on the current Intergovernmental Conference to correct the disparities between the various
1.
language versions of Article 158 and to ensure their consistency with Declaration 30, Declaration on
island regions, annexed to the Treaty of Amsterdam;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Intergovernmental Conference for the Reform

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of the Treaties, to the Council and to the Commission.

10. Anti-personnel mines

B5-0802/2000

European Parliament resolution on anti-personnel landmines

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to its resolutions of 17 December 1992 on the devastation caused by anti-personnel
landmines (1), of 29 June 1995 on landmines and blinding laser weapons (2) and on anti-personnel
landmines: a murderous impediment to development (3), and its most recent resolution of 18 December
1997 on the prohibition and destruction of anti-personnel mines (4),

(cid:1) having regard to the resolution of the ACP-EU Joint Assembly of 25-29 September 1995 on anti-

personnel landmines (ACP-EU 1522/95/fin),

(1) OJ C 21, 25.1.1993, p. 161.
(2) OJ C 183, 17.7.1995, p. 44.
(3) OJ C 183, 17.7.1995, p. 47.
(4) OJ C 14, 19.1.1998, p. 201.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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12.7.2001

Wednesday 25 October 2000

(cid:1) having regard to the communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Coun-
cil on action against anti-personnel landmines: reinforcing the contribution of the European Union
and the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation concerning action against anti-
personnel landmines (COM(2000) 111),

(cid:1) having regard to the oral questions to the Commission tabled by the Committee on Development and
Cooperation and the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence
Policy (B5-0544/2000 and B5-0545/2000),

A. whereas there are currently some hundred million mines dispersed throughout the world, and whereas
the problem of landmines and unexploded ordnance affects to some degree 88 countries, including
some of the poorest, 20 of these countries being particularly badly affected,

B. whereas new victims of anti-personnel landmines have been registered since March 1999 in 78 coun-

tries, 39 of them not being involved in a conflict situation,

C. whereas the use of anti-personnel landmines, in addition to resulting in the loss of human life, espe-
cially amongst the civilian population (a direct effect), represents a serious obstacle to the economic
and social recovery of countries where conflicts and/or civil wars are taking place (an indirect effect),

D. whereas the presence of mines and unexploded ordnance hinders or delays the return of refugees,
affects agricultural production, the environment, energy supplies, communications and education,
and imposes a huge burden on the health systems of afflicted countries,

E. whereas the international community has a duty to do everything possible to mitigate the difficulties

caused by the existence of anti-personnel landmines,

F.

recognising the efforts made thus far by international institutions, specialist NGOs, international agen-
cies and local communities to alleviate the sufferings, individual and collective, caused by anti-person-
nel landmines,

G. whereas on 1 March 1999 the Convention on the prohibition of the use, stockpiling, production and
transfer of anti-personnel mines and on their destruction (the Convention) came into force, and
whereas nearly three quarters of the world’s nations have joined the Convention (139 signatories
and 107 ratifications),

H. whereas all Member States of the European Union, with the exception of Finland, have signed this
Convention, and whereas these signatory states, with the exception of Greece, have ratified the Con-
vention,

I. whereas a major effort is still needed in order to achieve the goal of a mine-free world, since impor-
tant states, such as the US, Russia and China have not yet acceded to the Convention, more than 250
million anti-personnel landmines are still in the arsenal of 105 countries and too many states and
non-state actors still continue using anti-personnel landmines, in countries such as Chechnya, Angola,
Burma and in the conflict in the DRC and surrounding countries,

J. whereas, on the occasion of the Ottawa Conference, governments and institutions throughout the
world committed themselves to making a major financial contribution, equivalent to at least € 350
million over the next few years, to the fight against mines,

K. whereas the European Union allocated € 180 million over the period 1992 to 1998 to finance actions
against mines all over the world (support for demining programmes, assistance to mine victims,
research and technological development), and whereas in the same period, the Member States of the
European Union themselves undertook bilateral actions of a similar import,

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Wednesday 25 October 2000

L. whereas the leading role played by the European Union in action against mines has been recognised
by the international community; whereas the European Union provides support for actions in all the
most severely afflicted countries and whereas this frequently constitutes the main source of funding
for actions against landmines,

M. whereas action against landmines is frequently an integral part of humanitarian aid, rehabilitation,

reconstruction and development,

N. whereas European Union Member States have introduced a total ban on the export of all types of anti-
personnel landmines to all destinations and whereas measures have been adopted to ban the produc-
tion of landmines,

O. whereas EU Member States should stand by their commitment in the Convention in the framework of

ESDP and NATO joint operations,

Takes note of the considerable political and economic efforts made by the European Union to com-

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bat the scourge of anti-personnel landmines;

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Asks the European Union to reinforce the actions it is currently carrying out on preventing the
dissemination of landmines, on information, demining and help for the rehabilitation of victims and on
putting into place rehabilitation programmes in the worst affected areas;

3.
Asks the European Union to commit itself in a much more significant way, both politically and
financially, to work towards the total elimination of anti-personnel landmines within the timeframe set
out in the Convention;

4.
Calls for the integration of the provisions of the Convention in national legislation, which will make
the production, stockpiling, transfer and use of anti-personnel landmines part of the penal laws of the EU
Member States;

5.
Calls on the Council and the Member States to explicitly mention in their national legislation anti-
vehicle mines with anti-handling devices that act like anti-personnel landmines according to the definition
contained in Article 2 of the Ottawa Treaty;

6.
Deplores the continuing lack of effective coordination and coherence among the various European
Union policies likely to have an impact on the fight against mines and asks that effective, flexible and rapid
decision-making procedures be applied when dealing with action against mines; attaches great importance
to a considerable increase in EU funding for mine action, to be implemented efficiently and rapidly: this
increase in funding should primarily benefit the horizontal budget line to allow for greater coherence and
effectiveness of EU mine action, and should be based on clear criteria for the decision-making process,
which will also allow long-term funding in order to meet the development objectives of mine action pro-
grammes;

7. Welcomes the proposal to establish an Expert Group composed of demining experts of the Member
States and relevant international organisations; believes that NGOs should also be invited to participate in
the Expert Group in drawing up the horizontal guidelines and priorities for mine action;

8. Welcomes the proposal for a regulation concerning action against anti-personnel landmines and con-
gratulates the Commission on its intention to increase the European contribution for demining actions;

9. Welcomes the proposal of the Commission to submit an annual report summarising Community
mine action and to evaluate implementation of the regulation; calls on the Commission to make this
annual report public and as detailed as possible;

10.
Asks the European Community to adopt a more coherent and coordinated approach in each
afflicted country, focussing on the strengthening of international cooperation, and to seek, in particular,
to identify a series of global priorities in line with the commitments and the timeframe envisaged in the
Convention;

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12.7.2001

Wednesday 25 October 2000

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Calls on the Council and the EU Member States to explicitly state that neither in the framework of
future European Security and Defence Policy nor the framework of NATO will the use or assistance in
using, anti-personnel landmines be acceptable in joint operation;

12.
Calls on the international community to examine the appropriate measures to be taken both vis-à-
vis non-signatory states which persist in using anti-personnel landmines in an indiscriminate and irrespon-
sible manner, and vis-à-vis countries which, despite having signed the Convention, continue to utilise anti-
personnel landmines; believes that violations of the Convention and other elements of international huma-
nitarian law should be appropriately sanctioned, but this should not be achieved by denying the benefit of
vital mine and ordinance clearance work to the populations of countries affected;

Calls therefore on the signatory states of the Convention to introduce provisions to guarantee the

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effective application of the Convention and respect for the commitments contained therein;

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Calls on the European Union to take further action at the international level to get those countries
which are not yet signatories to the Convention to adhere to the convention within a reasonable time-
scale;

Asks that research efforts be intensified with the aim of developing safer technologies to facilitate

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and speed up the detection, removal and destruction of mines;

Proposes that the potential synergies between military and civil capabilities in the field of demining

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be fully exploited by the European Union, particularly in the sphere of its security and defence policy;

Asks the Member States of the European Union which have yet to sign and/or ratify the Convention

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to do both at the earliest possible opportunity;

18.
Asks that adherence to the Convention as well as the signature and observance of the Convention
be considered a vital point of reference in all negotiations between the European Union and third coun-
tries;

19.
Calls on the Member States of the European Union to guarantee genuine coordination between the
demining actions they themselves are financing individually, aid based on the European Development Fund
and the actions handled by the Commission;

20.
Calls on the Council and Commission to create the possibility of using the non-military rapid reac-
tion facility for emergency demining, for example in cases of great migration flows (returnees and refugees)
in mine-affected countries; believes, however, that these activities should be coordinated with existing
national capacities in recipient countries;

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Recommends that additional resources and better access to the funds be granted to NGOs and to
local communities to enable them to implement mine clearance programmes, awareness programmes and
victim assistance programmes, including care, rehabilitation and social and economic integration of mine
victims;

Proposes that resources allocated to projects for the destruction of anti-personnel landmine stock-
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piles stored in alarming numbers even on the territory of the European continent should be additional to
funds already committed to other mine actions; calls on all EU Member States to invite the US to remove
its stockpiles of anti-personnel mines from their territory;

Calls for maximum transparency in the funding, programming and implementation of the mine

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action projects of the Commission and the EU Member States;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments
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of the Member States of the European Union, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Interna-
tional Committee of the Red Cross, the Committee for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, the
ACP-EU Joint Assembly, and the governments of the United States of America, the Russian Federation and
the People’s Republic of China.