European Parliament resolution on the situation in the Middle East
Date: 2001-05-17
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Israel, Palestine question, foreign policy, occupied territory, peace, settlement of disputes, terrorism, violence

C 34 E/356

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

7.2.2002

Thursday 17 May 2001

(cid:129) having regard to Council documents 14052/2000, 14900/2000 and 5552/2001 (C5-0113/2001),

(cid:129) having been consulted by the Council pursuant to Article 39(1) of the EU Treaty (C5-0343/2000 and

C5-0396/2000),

(cid:129) having regard to Rules 106 and 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:129) having regard to the opinion of

the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market of
18 October 2000 on the use of Article 29 of the EU Treaty as the legal basis, annexed to report
A5-0317/2000,

(cid:129) having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens(cid:146) Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home
Affairs, proposing to take as the reference text the initiative of the Portuguese Republic, the French
Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden and the Kingdom of Belgium (A5-0153/2001),

Approves the initiative of the Portuguese Republic, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden and

1.
the Kingdom of Belgium as amended;

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament should it intend to depart from the text approved by

2.
Parliament;

Asks to be consulted again if the Council intends to amend substantially the initiative of the Por-

3.
tuguese Republic, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden and the Kingdom of Belgium;

4.
Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the Governments
of the Portuguese Republic, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden, the Kingdom of Belgium and
the Federal Republic of Germany.

6. Situation in the Middle East

B5-0344, 0346, 0349, 0352, 0354 and 0355/2001

European Parliament resolution on the situation in the Middle East

The European Parliament,

(cid:129) having regard to its previous resolutions on the Middle East Peace process, particularly its resolution of

5 October 2000 (1),

(cid:129) having regard to United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242, 338, 1310 and 1322,

(cid:129) having regard to the conclusions of 8 December 2000 of the European Council meeting in Nice,

(cid:129) having regard to the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights on

18 April 2001,

(cid:129) having regard to the statement by the Presidency of the European Union on 18 April 2001,

(cid:129) having regard to its resolution of 5 April 2001 (2) on the outcome of the Stockholm European Coun-

cil,

(cid:129) having regard to the principle of the Madrid Conference on the Middle East peace process,

A.

alarmed by the continuing deterioration of the prospects for the peace process in the Middle East,
since the region is ravaged daily by an escalation of violence, including the loss of many civilian lives,

B. whereas so far it has not been possible to achieve effective implementation of any initiative to encour-
age a resumption of dialogue between the Israelis and Palestinians to put an end to the escalating
violence,

(1)
(2)

(cid:145)Texts Adopted(cid:146), Item 9.
(cid:145)Texts Adopted(cid:146), Item 14.

7.2.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 34 E/357

C. whereas the report of the Sharm el Shaikh Fact-Finding Committee comes to the conclusion that Israel

has to freeze settlements and both parties have to halt violence unconditionally,

Thursday 17 May 2001

D. whereas there is an urgent need for the European Union to adopt new initiatives to help bring an end
to the violence, to build up confidence and to bring about a resumption of negotiations between the
two parties, on the basis of respect for international law and the relevant United Nations resolutions,

E. whereas, as declared by the EU Presidency,

(cid:145)the progress made on all major issues during the last

negotiations should form the basis for future talks on the permanent status(cid:146),

F.

noting with concern the new tensions that have arisen between Israel, Syria and Lebanon,

G. whereas a just, fair and lasting peace can be established only in a regional context and negotiations

also have to be resumed in the Syrian and Lebanese context,

H.

considering the intolerable situation of the Palestinian population in the Occupied Territories, which is
today the victim of an unacceptable and unfair collective punishment,

I.

shocked by several recent terrorist attacks against the Israeli civilian population committed by Palesti-
nians,

J. whereas several international and Palestinian-based organisations have reported the common practice
of serious human rights abuses by Palestinian officials, including torture and the denial of a fair trial,

K. whereas Israel has confirmed the existence of a policy of (cid:145)selecting military targets(cid:146) carried out by

security forces, and whereas the EU has condemned this policy of extrajudicial executions,

L.

pointing out, in this regard, the responsibility that Syria and Lebanon share in defusing tension and
controlling extremists groups,

M. whereas Israel(cid:146)s improper implementation of its trade-related agreements is causing the benefits of

Community preferences to accrue illegally to goods produced in illegal settlements,

Expresses its deep consternation at the number of civilian victims as a result of conflict in the last

1.
few months; and expresses its sympathy and solidarity with the families of all the victims;

Rejects the use of violence, reaffirms its commitment to pursuing the dialogue and peace negotiations

2.
and considers that there is no military solution to the conflict;

3.
Calls urgently on all parties concerned to put an end to violence; condemns the excessive and dis-
proportionate use of force, extrajudicial executions by the Israeli Army in the Occupied Territories and the
fact that the Occupied Territories have been totally sealed off; condemns all terrorist attacks perpetrated in
Israel; calls on the Palestinian National Authority to make every effort to fight against terrorism, reduce
violence and control extremists;

Condemns the Israeli Army(cid:146)s illegal incursions into the territories under the control of the Palestinian

4.
National Authority in the West Bank and Gaza;

Condemns the extension of settlements in the Occupied Territories, which creates a de facto situation

5.
which will make the application of future peace agreements more difficult;

C 34 E/358

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

7.2.2002

Thursday 17 May 2001

Notes the Sharm el Shaikh Fact-Finding Committee(cid:146)s conclusions and supports the view that all

6.
settlement, including natural growth, must be frozen;

Calls on the Member States, in accordance with the report, to propose to the United Nations Security

7.
Council that an observer mission be sent to the Palestinian territories;

8.
Supports any initiative intended to bring about a resumption of dialogue between Israelis and Pales-
tinians, especially from the Egyptian/Jordanian side; considers that only a resumption of dialogue and
application of confidence-building measures can achieve an effective end to all violence;

9.
Calls on the Israeli Government to restart negotiations by putting an end to the sealing-off of the
territories and to the continuation and expansion of the settlement policy and paying back the overdue tax
revenues to the Palestinian National Authority;

10.
Calls on the Gothenburg European Council to work out and adopt a common strategy on the
Middle East, on the basis of proposals presented by the High Representative for the CFSP, in cooperation
with the EU permanent representative in the Middle East, to achieve the objective of increased effectiveness
and visibility of the EU(cid:146)s political and diplomatic activity in the region, taking into account the several EP
resolutions on this issue;

11.
Regrets the attitude of some Member States at the annual meeting of the UN Commission on
Human Rights in Geneva; believes that the abstention on the resolution condemning human rights viol-
ations in the Occupied Territories endangers the profile of the EU, undermining the overall development of
the Euro-Mediterranean partnership;

12.
Considers that the disproportionate use of force by the Israeli Army and the collective punishment
are not in accordance with the principles of the association agreement already in force between the EU and
Israel; calls therefore on the Council and Commission to assess these violations, draw the necessary con-
clusions and report to the European Parliament;

13.
Urges the Commission and the Member States to take decisive measures to correct any violation of
rules of origin by Israel under the trade agreement with the EU and to inform Parliament, so as to avoid
any indirect complicity in illegal settlements;

14.
Considers that future peace proposals must be based on respect for international law, on United
Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, on effective and complete application of the interim
agreements already concluded between Israelis and Palestinians, and on what was achieved at the latest
Camp David negotiations;

Recalls the position of the EU in favour of the creation of a viable, democratic and peaceful Pales-

15.
tinian state;

Regards it as essential, in order to achieve peace in the region, that the Lebanese Government

16.
should exercise sovereignty over its own territory, and calls on Syria and Israel to enable it to do so;

Calls also on all Middle East countries to cooperate effectively against terrorist networks and to

17.
reiterate their commitment to the security of all countries in the region;

Stresses the importance of implementing, in the whole region, an education policy aimed at pro-

18.
moting tolerance and mutual understanding between cultures and religions;

19.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Israeli Govern-
ment and Parliament, the Palestinian National Authority and Legislative Council and the United Nations
Secretary-General.