WRITTEN QUESTION E-1854/03 by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Landslides in Greece and infrastructural damage.
Date: 2003-06-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Greece, environmental risk prevention, geology, hazard science, natural disaster, research project, transport infrastructure

C 78 E/390

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

27.3.2004

successful conclusion of the negotiations. The Association Agreement, such as foreseen in the Council’s
negotiating directives, will cover a wide range of issues. For the political dialogue issues and the principles
guiding the Association, negotations are followed by the Member States and these are consulted regularly
in the relevant Council working group. As for all mixed agreements, once negotiations have been
concluded, the full text will be submitted to the Council and to the Parliament for ratification.

The Council’s negotiating directives were extended in 2001 to include provisions on cooperation on
counter-terrorism. In the course of negotiations on the text of this article, the Commission has expressed
to Syrian authorities its position against terrorism and has condemned all attacks on civilians.

The Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements do not include positions or statements on individual
political conflicts or issues, but contain provisions for long-term stable relationships based on a number of
basic and general principles.

More generally, the Union has encouraged Syria to take an active part in relaunching the Middle East Peace
Process in the framework of the road map prepared by the Quartet. A natural part of such a step is for
Syria to cease links with organisations that do not accept Israel’s right to exist, in particular those listed as
terrorist organisations by the Council. In this context, we welcome the recent closure of the offices of
rejectionist Palestinian organisations in Syria. In line with the road map’s point on this, the Member fo the
Commission in charge of External Relations also raised the issue of stopping Arab countries’ support to
terrorist organisations during the Euro-Mediterranean Mid-Term Meeting of Foreign Minister’s on Crete on
26/27 May 2003.

The road map clearly refers to the need to relaunch the Lebanese and Syrian tracks and it mentions the
Saudi peace initiative recognising Israel’s right to exist within the 1967 borders. Syria accepted this by
voting in favour of the Beirut Declaration of the Arab League in 2002. This recognition is further
confirmed by the apparent resumption of contacts between Syria and Israel.

Regarding the presence of Syrian troops in Lebanon, these were invited by Christian factions at the start of
the civil war in 1976. The 1989 Ta’if Agreement, which ended the civil war, provided for initial
redeployment of the Syrian troops from Lebanese cities to the Beka’a valley. The timetable for their final
withdrawal was to be agreed between the Syrian and Lebanese governments. Lebanon has not yet
requested this. Since the Israeli withdrawal from Southern Lebanon, calls in Lebanon for Syrian withdrawal
have become more vocal, and a partial Syrian retreat has taken place in the last two years.

The Commission deplores any publication of anti-Semitic literature. It may be noted that under the future
Association Agreement’s human rights clause, the EU will be in a stronger position to raise issues of this
kind with Syria.

(2004/C 78 E/0413)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1854/03

by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 June 2003)

Subject: Landslides in Greece and infrastructural damage

In my Written Question E-1141/03 (1) I asked the Commission whether landslides in Greece (causing
unprecedented damage in many cases to infrastructures which had been completed only a few months
previously) were linked to geological upheavals which could be caused by intense seismic activity affecting
Greece as a whole.

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The reply by Commissioner Barnier was not entirely satisfactory since he referred me to replies from his
colleagues, omitting any mention of my query regarding the connection between landslides and seismic
activity in Greece. Can the Commission reply to this question and say whether it has carried out surveys of
seismic activity in the south-east Mediterranean containing forecasts or conclusions regarding the possible
future intensification of this phenomenon?

(1) See page 360.

Answer given by Mr Busquin on behalf of the Commission

(23 July 2003)

It is well known that certain landslides in Greece like the Malakassa slide in 1995 provoked the disruption
of road and railway links between Athens and Northern Greece for about four days. The risk of landslides
as a research issue was recognised in the 4th and 5th Community Research and Technological
Development (RTD) Framework Programmes and led to the funding of research projects under the theme
‘natural hazards’. The Sixth framework Programme foresees the continuation of funding research on
landslides under the priority ‘Global Change and Ecosystems’. Landslide research focuses on risk assessment
and mitigation with the aim of evaluating strategies for disaster reduction, while integrating the social and
economic impacts of disasters. One of the main aims of the Community funded research projects is the
study of the mechanisms provoking landslides; another objective is the monitoring of landslides using
there are also ongoing
remote sensing techniques and comparing them with infield information;
geotechnical investigations which study the subsidence problems.

In this context, the Community funded project ‘Segrodi’, which studied displacements of slopes caused by
It seems that important earthquakes can also cause slope slides.
earthquakes,
However,
there is no clear evidence of any forecast capability regarding the
intensification of the links between landslides and earthquakes in Greece.

is worth mentioning.

for the time being,

At present, there are some relevant studies being supported under the Environment Programme of the
5th RTD Framework Programme, the results of which are foreseen to be presented at the next Euro
Mediterranean Disaster Information Network (EURO-MEDIN) Forum which is expected to be held around
the end of 2004.

(2004/C 78 E/0414)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1869/03

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(6 June 2003)

Subject: Pension losses

Is the Commission able to estimate the number of contributors to funded pension schemes who have been
adversely affected by employer decisions either to terminate such schemes entirely, or to fail to make up
the necessary level of contributions to assure defined benefits? Does the Commission believe that additional
measures to safeguard pension provision are necessary, and does the extension of the single market mean
that these should be at European level?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(15 July 2003)

As this is a matter that falls within the responsibilities of the Member States and the two sides of industry,
the Commission does not have estimates of the number of contributors to funded pension schemes who
have been adversely affected by employer decisions either to terminate such schemes entirely, or to fail to
make up the necessary level of contributions to assure defined benefits. Such data is also likely to be
difficult to obtain at the national level.