WRITTEN QUESTION E-1972/01 by Elizabeth Lynne (ELDR) to the Council. Kashmir.
Date: 2001-07-12
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European Union, India, Pakistan, cooperation policy, the EU's international role

C 93 E/40

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2002

Following coordination between ECHO, the World Food Programme and the UNHCR (Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), on 3 May the Commission decided on an emergency allocation
of EUR 3.77 million in order to transport basic foodstuffs and build up three months’ reserve. The first
products funded from this allocation have already arrived in the camps. In order to deal with the difficult
situation, ECHO has also amended one of the contracts which it adopted in 2000 in order to increase the
amount of barley supplied. ECHO is also preparing a comprehensive EUR 11.8 million plan, almost 80 %
of which will be given over to food aid since that is the area with the main shortages. This global plan was
presented to the Committee on Humanitarian Aid on 5 July and was unanimously approved. On 20 July
the Commission consequently took a decision approving the plan and the contracts were sent to the
ECHO partners in the first fortnight of August.

With the 2001 global plan, ECHO’s total aid for Sahrawi refugees in 2000 and 2001 will have reached
almost EUR 30 million, i.e. an increase of almost 50 % compared with the average aid granted in the
period 1995-1999.

Since the Western Sahara is a forgotten crisis and suffers from donor fatigue, the Commission’s budget
cannot 7 despite all the efforts 7 make up on its own for the UN agencies’ shortfall.

During its missions and at official meetings ECHO has therefore tried to make the Member States aware of
the situation. ECHO recently presented a paper to the members of the Committee on Humanitarian Aid
meeting in Sweden, describing the Sahara as a forgotten crisis requiring more bilateral contributions.

The matter of the Western Sahara was tackled again in Brussels on 21 June at a high-level meeting
between ECHO and UNHCR representatives. The Member of the Commission with special responsibility
for external relations visited Morocco on 18 June and top-level discussions were held on the conflict.

Since the Sahrawi refugees have for a long time been living in a state of dependence, recurrent nutritional
deficiencies and the lack of a varied diet have caused serious health problems (anaemia, retarded growth
etc.) among the refugees. For that reason ECHO decided that under its global plans most of its aid should
take the form of supplementary foodstuffs (such as milk powder and fish) in addition to the continued
funding of staples such as barley.

(2002/C 93 E/052)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1972/01

by Elizabeth Lynne (ELDR) to the Council

(12 July 2001)

Subject: Kashmir

Given the recent Indian Government offer of talks with Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir, what
initiatives will the European Union be taking to ensure that this opportunity is fully realised?

Reply

(10 December 2001)

The Council expressed its position on the Indo-Pakistan dialogue in its declaration of 19 July 2001 on the
occasion of the Indo-Pakistan Summit in Agra (15-16 July 2001). The Council, inter alia, welcomed the
resumption of the dialogue and encouraged both parties to take further steps in the direction of the final
resolution of all their differences in a constructive manner.

The Council also conveys this message in the regular and ad hoc political dialogue meetings which it holds
with both countries.

As far as the Union’s support for a negotiated settlement of the Kashmir issue is concerned, the Council
would like to refer the Honourable MEP to its reply to Brian Crowley’s Oral Question H-0375/2001, given
in the May Plenary session.