WRITTEN QUESTION P-2336/01 by Esko Seppänen (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. EIB loan to Turkey.
Date: 2001-07-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EIB loan, Türkiye, earthquake, fund (EU), use of aid

C 93 E/114

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2002

(2002/C 93 E/133)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2336/01

by Esko Seppänen (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(26 July 2001)

Subject: EIB loan to Turkey

In accordance with a Council decision, and following consultation of Parliament, the European Investment
Bank has granted Turkey EUR 600 m with an EU guarantee for reconstruction in the wake of the country’s
earthquake disasters. It appears that EUR 225 m of this will not be utilised in 2002, because there has
been no proposal for a transfer to the guarantee fund for this purpose. What are the Commission’s reasons
for not promoting this priority project in 2002? Is it seeking in this way to prioritise other loans requiring
a guarantee?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(28 September 2001)

The Commission is monitoring,
in close collaboration with the European Investment Bank (EIB), the
implementation of the ‘TERRA’ loan to Turkey for which the Council approved a specific mandate with a
Union guarantee (€ 600 million in total to be contracted within a period of three years from early 2000 to
the beginning of 2003).

At the end of 2000, the entire availability of € 600 million was committed for a number of projects, of
which € 375 million were already signed, thus leaving available for further signatures the amount of € 225
million to be contracted by the beginning of 2003.

The mandate was approved by the Council
inter-institutionnel 1999/0212(CNS), decision
(dossier
12929/1/99) and the related lending is covered by a Commission Guarantee as foreseen in the decision
to be extended to all the contracts signed under the mandate; therefore the funds allocated for this purpose
can not be transferred to other actions, but remain available for contracts to be signed within the
framework of the ‘TERRA’ mandate. The € 225 million still available for contracts to be signed by the
beginning of 2003 are covered by the Union guarantee as specified in the mandate.

As far as the release of the Commission guarantee is concerned, the applicable procedure envisages that
every year the EIB communicates to the Commission services the forecasts of loan disbursements. The
transfer of the corresponding guarantee funds is then made on the basis of these forecasts.

The transfer of the guarantee fund for the € 225 million to be contracted up to the end of 2002 will be
made by the Commission at the beginning of 2001, after having received the EIB forecasts for the loan
utilisation.

(2002/C 93 E/134)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2340/01

by Pat Gallagher (UEN) to the Commission

(1 August 2001)

Subject: Minority and regional languages < inclusion in European Union programmes

inclusion of

Does the Commission share the view that Europe’s regional and minority languages can be promoted
it take
through the horizontal
immediate action to ensure that regional and minority languages are included in the Fifth Framework
Programme for Research and Development, the Culture 2000 Framework Programme, the MEDIA Plus
Programme, an action plan within existing programmes such as Socrates, Leonardo and Youth, European
Union action in support of education and SMUs, Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund, the e-Europe
Action Plan, the e-Content Programme and the action plan on venture capital?

language aspects in a variety of EU programmes? Will