European Parliament resolution on the outcome of the European Council of 23/24 March 2001 in Stockholm, with regard to foreign affairs matters
Date: 2001-04-05
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: European Council, common foreign and security policy, cooperation policy, foreign policy, peace

C 21 E/342

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

24.1.2002

Thursday 5 April 2001

14. Stockholm European Council: Foreign Affairs

B5-0252, 0253, 0254 and 0258/2001

European Parliament resolution on the outcome of the European Council of 23/24 March 2001 in
Stockholm, with regard to foreign affairs matters

The European Parliament,

(cid:129) having regard to the conclusions of the European Council on 23/24 March 2001 in Stockholm,

The western Balkans and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)

1. Welcomes the actions undertaken by the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to arrest
the former President Milosevic and support the legal initiatives for a trial in Belgrade; insists, however, that
Milosevic be transferred to the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia (ICTY) in order to stand trial
on the indictments for war crimes;

2.
Encourages the Commission and Council to support the government of FYROM in the defence both
of its territorial integrity and of internal public order as well as in its policy for improving inter-ethnic
relations by ensuring equal rights and opportunities for all citizens of the republic, irrespective of their
ethnic background;

Deeply regrets the outbreak of the crisis in FYROM and underlines its commitment to the principles

3.
of the inviolability of borders and territorial integrity of all the countries in the Balkans;

Rejects President Putin(cid:146)s suggestion to take the Russian forces(cid:146) campaign in Chechnya as an example
4.
for dealing with the incidents at the FRY/Kosovo (cid:129) FYROM border; regrets that the Council Presidency
chose to let these public remarks and suggestions pass without any comment;

5.
Asks the UNMIK special envoy in Kosovo to speed up the procedure leading to democratic elections,
open to all citizens in a safe environment, in order to produce a democratically elected body, which can be
a partner in the discussions on the future of Kosovo;

6.
Supports the action of the Council, the High Representative for the CFSP, Javier Solana, and Com-
missioner Patten with a view to stopping the fighting, and encourages the resumption of dialogue between
all the parties; calls for the speedy development of an early warning system to keep the crisis under
control;

7.
Supports the opening of negotiations between the FYROM authorities and the legitimate represen-
tatives of the ethnic Albanian community with a view to a deep reform of the Constitution and establish-
ing equal rights for both communities;

8. Welcomes the efforts by the FRY and Serbian authorities to start talks in the framework of the (cid:145)Covic
plan(cid:146) in order to reach a negotiated settlement to the conflict in southern Serbia, and invites the Council
and Commission to assist this process;

The Middle East

9.
Rejects the use of violence and reaffirms its commitment to pursuing the dialogue; welcomes the
European Council(cid:146)s decision to invite the High Representative for the CFSP, Javier Solana, to remain in
close contact with all the parties involved and to report in full association with the Commission, at the
latest at the Gothenburg European Council, on how the European Union should play an enhanced role in
promoting the resumption of the peace process;

Is convinced that now more than ever the EU must contribute in an even-handed manner to build-

10.
ing up confidence to resume the peace process;

Calls on the Israeli government to refrain from any disproportionate use of force and on the Pales-

11.
tinian National Authority to make every effort to control extremists;

12.
Calls on all parties involved to cease any actions leading to an increase in tension and to seek a
non-violent solution and urgently resume negotiations for an agreement in the framework of the respective
United Nations resolutions;

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Thursday 5 April 2001

13.
Calls on the Israeli government to show its willingness to restart negotiations by putting an end to
the blockade of the territories and to the expansion of settlements, and paying back the overdue revenues
to the Palestinian National Authority;

Urges the Member States to strengthen customs controls on Israeli products imported into the EU,
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starting the infringement proceedings provided for in the Association Agreement if there are products
coming from the occupied territories;

15.

Recalls the position of the EU in favour of the creation of a viable Palestinian state;

Calls on the Member States to renew all efforts to ensure that the UN Security Council deploys a

16.
monitoring mission in the Palestinian territories;

17.
Calls on the Israeli and Syrian governments to resume dialogue and direct negotiations to overcome
their conflicts, and encourages Javier Solana and the High Representative of the EU for the region, Miguel
`ngelMoratinos, to participate fully in this process;

The Russian Federation

18. Welcomes the Union(cid:146)s strategic partnership with Russia; stresses that this partnership should be
built on common values and repeats, therefore, its request to the Russian Federation to stop violations of
the human rights of citizens and refugees both within and from Chechnya and to demonstrate restraint in
its military actions in the area; demands that independent media and humanitarian organisations be
granted free access to all areas under Russian control in order to improve living conditions for all those
concerned;

Kaliningrad

Calls the Commission and Council, in view of the future position of the Russian district of Kalin-
19.
ingrad surrounded by the EU, to establish flexible relations with the district of Kaliningrad and its citizens,
in close collaboration with the Russian Federation; notes that particular attention will have to be paid to
making the application of the Schengen acquis to Lithuania and Poland, and access for Russian citizens,
mutually acceptable and compatible;

The Northern Dimension

Calls on the Commission and Council to fully exploit the potential offered by the Northern Dimen-
20.
sion policy; welcomes, within this framework, the promotion of the co-funding of actions to combat
pollution in the Baltic Sea, especially the initiative to co-fund the St Petersburg sewage treatment plants
project;

21. Welcomes the decision to open up EIB lending to selected environmental projects in Russia, which
is of crucial importance for the environment in the Baltic;

The Korean peninsula

22. Welcomes the decision to enhance the role of the European Union in the Korean peninsula in
support of peace, security and freedom, but believes that assistance to North Korea should be reviewed,
with regard in particular to the KEDO agreement;

*

*

*

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the President and
23.
Parliament of the Russian Federation, the Governments and Parliaments of Israel and Syria, the President of
the Palestinian National Authority and the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Governments and Parlia-
ments of North and South Korea, the Governments and Parliaments of FYROM and FRY and the UN
Secretary-General.