European Parliament resolution on the draft Commission decisions establishing Country Strategy Papers and Indicative Programmes for Malaysia, Brazil and Pakistan
Date: 2007-02-15
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Brazil, Malaysia, Pakistan, aid programme, cooperation policy, development aid, financing, poverty

29.11.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 287 E/507

Thursday 15 February 2007

25.
Urges the Commission to continue giving maximum priority to cooperation with RFMOs such as the
North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission, the North-West Atlantic Fisheries Organisation and the Commis-
sion for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources which, with their initiatives designed to
combat illegal fishing, have proved to be the most suitable instruments for ensuring good governance on
the high seas;

Urges the Commission and the Council to strengthen the resources allocated to the fight against

26.
corruption and organised crime at all levels;

27.
Is convinced that the keys to reducing and eliminating IUU fishing are full traceability all along the
chain of custody, transparency of decisions, cooperation within the EU and the wider international com-
munity and, most importantly, a demonstration of political will by all parties; reiterates that, unless much
more is done, fish stocks will continue to be depleted and fishing communities in the EU and elsewhere will
suffer even greater hardship;

28.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments
and parliaments of the Member States, the Committee on Fisheries of the FAO and the secretariats of the
RFMOs to which the EU belongs.

P6_TA(2007)0045

Country Strategy Papers — Malaysia, Brazil and Pakistan

European Parliament resolution on the draft Commission decisions establishing Country Strategy
Papers and Indicative Programmes for Malaysia, Brazil and Pakistan

The European Parliament,

— having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of

18 December 2006 establishing a financing instrument for development cooperation, (1)

— having regard to the draft Commission decisions establishing Country Strategy Papers and Indicative
Programmes for Malaysia, Brazil and Pakistan (CMT-2007-0001, CMT-2006-3525 and CMT-2006-
3021),

— having regard to the opinions delivered on 25 January 2007 by the committee referred to in Article 35
(1) of the above regulation (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI)
management committee’),

— having regard to Article 8 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the proce-

dures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission, (2)

— having regard to Rule 81 of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas, on 25 January 2007, the DCI management committee voted in favour of the draft Commis-
sion decisions establishing Country Strategy Papers and Indicative Programmes for Malaysia, Brazil and
Pakistan (CMT-2007-0001, CMT-2006-3525, CMT-2006-3021),

B. whereas, pursuant to Article 7(3) of Decision 1999/468/EC and point 1 of the Agreement between the
European Parliament and the Commission on procedures
implementing Council Decision
1999/468/EC, (3) the European Parliament received the draft implementing measures submitted to the
DCI management committee and the results of voting,

for

(1) OJ L 378, 27.12.2006, p. 41.
(2) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision 2006/512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, p. 11).
(3) OJ L 256, 10.10.2000, p. 19.

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C. whereas Article 2(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 stipulates that ‘the primary and overarching
objective of cooperation under this Regulation shall be the eradication of poverty in partner countries
and regions in the context of sustainable development’,

D. whereas Article 2(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 stipulates that ‘measures referred to in Article 1
(1)[ (1)] shall be designed so as to fulfil the criteria for Official Development Assistance (ODA) estab-
lished by the [Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development] (OECD/DAC)’,

E. whereas,

in its ‘Reporting Directives for the Creditor Reporting System’

(DCD/DAC(2002)21), the
OECD/DAC defines ODA as financial flows to countries on the DAC list of ODA recipients for which,
‘each transaction is administered with the promotion of the economic development and
inter alia,
welfare of developing countries as its main objective’,

F. whereas paragraphs 3 and 8 of Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 stipulate respectively that
‘strategy papers shall, in principle, be based on a dialogue with the partner country or region which
involves civil society and regional and local authorities’ and that ‘the Commission and the Member
States shall consult each other, as well as other donors and development actors including representa-
tives of civil society and regional and local authorities, at an early stage of the programming process in
order to promote complementarity among their cooperation activities’,

1.
Takes the view that in most draft Strategy Papers and draft Indicative Programmes the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) are not clearly presented as a main priority; considers that this is not in com-
pliance with Article 2(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 as the pursuit of the MDGs is established there
as one of the overarching principles of cooperation under the DCI;

Malaysia

2.
Takes the view that, in its draft Strategy Paper and draft National Indicative Programme 2007-2010
for Malaysia, the Commission exceeds its implementing powers laid down in the basic act by selecting as the
only focal sector (for which 100 % of the funds are earmarked) ‘EU-Malaysia Policy Dialogue Facility on
Trade and Investment’, ‘the overall objective of which is to facilitate trade and investment relations between
the EU and Malaysia’ and by including two specific objectives for the actions, namely ‘to increase EU market
knowledge for the Malaysian business community and vice versa’ and ‘to raise … EU visibility in Malaysia
through joint initiatives’; considers that these objectives are not in compliance with Article 2(1) and (4) of
Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006, in that the primary objective of the Strategy Paper is not the eradication of
poverty and in that the stated objectives do not fulfil the criteria for ODA established by the OECD/DAC;

Brazil

Takes the view that in its draft Strategy Paper and draft National Indicative Programme 2007-2010 for
3.
Brazil the Commission exceeds its implementing powers laid down in the basic act by earmarking 70 % of
the National Indicative Programme for Priority I ‘Enhancing Bilateral Relations’, which has as specific objec-
tives: ‘(i) [to] improve the sectoral dialogues between the EU and Brazil on themes of mutual interest; (ii) [to]
expand cooperation and exchanges between relevant European and Brazilian institutions and civil society
organisations; (iii) [to] strengthen links between EU and Brazilian academia; (iv) [to] enhance mutual aware-
ness between EU and Brazilian institutions and societies’, and under which a facility ‘to promote and sup-
port sectoral dialogues on themes of common interest’ will be financed, as well as the establishment of a
European Studies Institute, with the main purpose of ‘raising the EU's profile’ and ‘strengthening higher
education links’; considers that these objectives are not in compliance with Article 2(1) and (4) of Regulation
(EC) No 1905/2006, in that the primary objective of the Strategy Paper is not the eradication of poverty
and in that the stated objectives do not fulfil the criteria for ODA established by the OECD/DAC;

(1) Article 1(1): “The Community shall finance measures aimed at supporting cooperation with developing countries,

territories and regions (…).”.

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Thursday 15 February 2007

Pakistan

4.
Takes the view that in its draft Strategy Paper and draft National Indicative Programme 2007-2010 for
Pakistan the Commission exceeds its implementing powers laid down in the basic act by including in Non-
focal area 3 of the National Indicative Programme ‘Anti-money laundering’ (1) activities with the overall
objective of ‘contributing to the efforts of the Pakistani authorities to implement UNSCR 1373’; (2) considers
that this objective is not in compliance with Article 2(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 in that it does
not fulfil the criteria for ODA established by the OECD/DAC;

*

*

*

5.
Calls on the Commission to withdraw or amend its draft decisions establishing Country Strategy
Papers and Indicative Programmes for Malaysia, Brazil and Pakistan, and to submit to the DCI management
committee new draft decisions fully respecting the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission, and the parliaments

6.
and governments of the Member States.

In the Country Strategy Paper's table of contents, this area is referred to as ‘Counter-terrorism and Security’.

(1)
(2) United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373(2001), adopted on 28 September 2001, after the terrorist attacks
of 11 September 2001 in the USA, imposes wide-ranging obligations on all States to prevent and suppress the
financing of terrorism, to establish adequate penalties for terrorist offences, to deny safe haven to terrorists and to
cooperate with other States in criminal proceedings or investigations relating to terrorist acts.

P6_TA(2007)0046

EC-Russia Short-stay Visa Agreement *

legislative resolution on the proposal

European Parliament
for a Council decision on the
conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and the Russian Federation on
the facilitation of issuance of short-stay visas (8780/2006 — COM(2006)0188 — C6-0169/2006 —
2006/0062(CNS))

(Consultation procedure)

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the proposal for a Council decision (COM(2006)0188) (1),

— having regard to Article 62(2)(b)(i) and (ii) and Article 300(2), first subparagraph, first sentence, of the

EC Treaty,

— having regard to Article 300(3), first subparagraph, of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council

consulted Parliament (C6-0169/2006),

— having regard to Rules 51 and 83(7) of its Rules of Procedure,

— having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and the

opinion of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (A6-0029/2007),

1.

Approves the conclusion of the Agreement;

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and the Commission, and the govern-

2.
ments and parliaments of the Member States and of the Russian Federation.

(1) Not yet published in OJ.