P6_TA(2007)0472#Turkey#European Parliament resolution of 24 October 2007 on EU-Turkey relations
Date: 2007-10-24
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Community acquis, Türkiye, accession negotiations, association agreement (EU)

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Wednesday 24 October 2007

25.
Encourages the Commission to continue to implement support measures at EU level, e.g. awareness-
raising measures; considers that developing the skills of doctors and other health care personnel should be
an important field, to which priority is assigned;

Calls on the Commission urgently to investigate the health risks associated with consumption of snus

26.
and its impact on the consumption of cigarettes;

27.
Calls, as one arm of the budgetary authority, for the financing of these awareness-raising measures,
which is currently assured by the Community Tobacco Fund, to continue to be guaranteed when the fund is
phased out;

28.
Calls on the Commission and the Member States to include tobacco control as a key priority in their
health and development work and to work with low-income countries to ensure that all necessary funding
and technical assistance is made available so that the EU's ACP partners are able to comply with their
obligations under the FCTC; calls on the Commission to always promptly pay all financial commitments
linked to the FCTC and related initiatives in the UN system;

29.

Calls on Italy and the Czech Republic to ratify the FCTC as soon as possible;

30.
Condemns the disregard shown by some Members and staff of the European Parliament for the
restrictions on smoking in the European Parliament, e.g. by smoking in staircases or in the open Members'
bar in Strasbourg;

31.
Calls on the Bureau, in the light of its duty to set an example, to adopt a smoking ban with no
exemptions in all parts of the European Parliament with immediate effect; calls for a rigorous enforcement
of this ban;

32.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission.

P6_TA(2007)0472

Turkey

European Parliament resolution of 24 October 2007 on EU-Turkey relations

The European Parliament,

— having regard to its resolution of 15 December 2004 on the 2004 regular report and the recommen-

dation of the European Commission on Turkey's progress towards accession (1),

— having regard to its resolution of 28 September 2005 on the opening of negotiations with Turkey (2),

— having regard to its resolution of 27 September 2006 on Turkey's progress towards accession (3),

— having regard to its resolutions of 16 March 2006 on the Commission's 2005 enlargement strategy
paper (4) and of 13 December 2006 on the Commission's Communication on the Enlargement Strategy
and Main Challenges 2006-2007 (5),

(1) OJ C 226 E, 15.9.2005, p. 189.
(2) OJ C 227 E, 21.9.2006, p. 163.
(3) OJ C 306 E, 15.12.2006, p. 284.
(4) OJ C 291 E, 30.11.2006, p. 402.
(5) Texts Adopted, P6_TA(2006)0568.

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— having regard to the Negotiating Framework for Turkey of 3 October 2005,

Wednesday 24 October 2007

— having regard to Council Decision 2006/35/EC of 23 January 2006 on the principles, priorities and

conditions contained in the Accession Partnership with Turkey (1) (‘the Accession Partnership’),

— having regard to the Turkey 2006 Progress Report of the Commission (SEC(2006)1390),

— having regard to the Commission Communication to the European Parliament and the Council on the

enlargement strategy and main challenges 2006-2007 (COM(2006)0649),

— having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas accession negotiations with Turkey were opened on 3 October 2005 after approval by the
Council of the Negotiating Framework, and whereas the opening of those negotiations is the starting
point for an open-ended process,

B. whereas Turkey has committed itself to reforms, good neighbourly relations and progressive alignment
with the EU, and whereas these efforts should be viewed as an opportunity for Turkey itself to moder-
nise,

C. whereas full compliance with all the Copenhagen criteria and EU integration capacity, in accordance
with the conclusions of the December 2006 European Council meeting, remain the basis for accession
to the EU,

D. whereas Turkey has not yet fully implemented the provisions stemming from the EC-Turkey Association

Agreement and its Additional Protocol,

E. whereas, after a wave of reforms introduced between 2002 and 2004, the pace of reforms in Turkey
has slowed down; whereas on 17 April 2007 the Turkish Government adopted its ‘Programme for
Alignment with the EU Acquis 2007-2013’, and whereas on 31 August 2007 the new Turkish Govern-
ment presented its programme, which includes strengthening the economy, drafting a new constitution
and accelerating the reforms needed to bring Turkey closer to the EU,

1.
Calls on the Commission to identify in its regular report those subjects which have to be addressed by
Turkey as a matter of priority, focusing on the achievement of the short-term and medium-term priorities
set out in the Accession Partnership, and to pay particular attention to the subjects highlighted in this
resolution; expects the Commission to fully utilise all appropriate means to support the reform process
efficiently, reminding Turkey that honouring its commitments within the timetable set by the Accession
Partnership is of paramount importance to its credibility;

2.
Congratulates Turkey on having held free and fair elections, as indicated by the Election Assessment
Mission deployed by the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and a delegation of
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe; welcomes the election of a Turkish Grand National
Assembly in which all the regions are represented and in which the participation of women has increased,
and encourages the newly elected deputies to commit themselves to further strengthening democracy in
Turkey;

3. Welcomes the election of the new President as a sign of the strength of Turkish democracy; calls upon
President Abdullah Gül to promote pluralism and the unity of the Turkish people in a secular state on its
way to difficult but necessary reforms;

(1) OJ L 22, 26.1.2006, p. 34.

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4.
Expects the new Turkish Government, which benefits from a strong mandate and popular trust, to
accelerate the process of reforms in order to fulfil the commitments defined in the Accession Partnership;
encourages the government to search for a broad consensus within the Turkish parliament and with Turkish
civil society on constitutional and institutional matters; recalls that the development of Turkey into a demo-
cratic and prosperous state governed by the rule of law together with the uniform application of legal
norms are of strategic importance for Turkey, its society and the EU; welcomes in this respect the commit-
ment of the new government to enhance the reform process in the coming months and years;

5. Welcomes the intention of the new Turkish Government to adopt a new and civilian constitution
which will protect fundamental human rights and freedoms; underlines the need to ensure that the new
constitution establishes a system of checks and balances guaranteeing the democratic and secular character
of the Turkish State; calls on all parties to support an open and consensual constitutional process; recalls in
this context its earlier recommendation on the electoral threshold; stresses that constitutional plans should
not postpone urgently needed reforms, especially on Article 301 of the Penal Code;

6. Welcomes the positive economic development of Turkey in recent years; considers it, however, vital to
increase employment and to develop a reform strategy which will reinforce the social cohesion of the
Turkish society;

7. Welcomes the efforts made by the Turkish Government to align itself with the EU energy acquis and
supports the opening of negotiations on the energy chapter as soon as technical preparations are completed;
encourages Turkey to join, as a full member, the European Energy Community, and thus to further
strengthen energy cooperation between the EU and Turkey, with a view to reinforcing the energy supply
security and supporting the use of renewable energy resources and the investments in energy efficiency;
underlines the importance of Turkey as a transit hub for the diversification of gas supplies to the EU;
emphasises that energy projects involving Turkey in the South Caucasus should be open to all countries of
that region, which are part of the EU's neighbourhood policy;

8.
Notes that Turkey's geo-strategic position in the region and its role in transportation and logistics will
become more important in the coming years; calls on the Commission to issue a specific report on the
latest developments and future challenges;

9.
Is concerned about the repeated interference by the Turkish armed forces in the political process;
stresses that further efforts are needed to ensure full and effective civilian control over the military; under-
lines that the formulation and implementation of the national security strategy should be supervised by the
civilian authorities; calls for the establishment of full parliamentary oversight of military and defence policy
and all related expenditure; calls moreover for parliamentary supervision over the country's secret services,
gendarmerie and police;

10. Welcomes the EU-Turkey Civil Society Dialogue, and asks the Commission to report on the activities
that have been carried out within that framework; underlines the importance of increased contacts between
the civil societies in Turkey and the EU; calls on the Commission to provide targeted support to civil society,
to be more present in different regions of Turkey, and in this context to pay particular attention to the
south-east; calls on the new Turkish Government to involve Turkish civil society, an important promoter
of democracy in Turkey, more intensively in the reform process;

11.
Refers to its abovementioned resolution of 27 September 2006, in particular those of its paragraphs
which concern the reforms needed to improve the functioning of the judiciary and the combating of cor-
ruption, respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, protection of women's rights, implementation
of the zero-tolerance-to-torture policy and the protection of minority, religious and cultural rights; awaits,
before assessing the progress made in implementing such reforms, the results of the intensified monitoring
of the political criteria announced by the Commission in its last enlargement strategy; calls on the Com-
mission to publish those results in its forthcoming progress report;

12.
Urges the new Turkish Government to fully implement the provisions stemming from the EC-Turkey
Association Agreement and its Additional Protocol; recalls that the non-fulfilment of Turkey's commitments
as referred to in the Accession Partnership will continue seriously to affect the process of negotiations;

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Wednesday 24 October 2007

13.
Deplores the fact that a number of people are still being prosecuted under Article 301 of the Penal
Code; strongly condemns the recent conviction of Saris Seropyan and Arat Dink under this article; urges the
government and the newly elected parliament to make sure that all provisions of the Penal Code allowing
for arbitrary restrictions on the expression of non-violent opinions are removed and that freedom of expres-
sion and freedom of the press are guaranteed; regards this as a top priority for the new government;

14.
Stresses the need to adopt without delay a Law on Foundations that addresses the current legal
uncertainty regarding the status of religious minorities and sets a clear legal framework enabling them to
exercise their religion freely by allowing them, inter alia, to own property and train clergy; shares the con-
cern expressed by the Council on 24 July 2007 over the recent ruling of the Turkish Court of Cassation
with regard to the Ecumenical Patriarchate; urges the new Turkish Government to bring its approach
towards religious minorities into line with principles of freedom of religion as defined by the European
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the case-law of the Euro-
pean Court of Human Rights; calls on the Commission to raise these issues with the new government; also
invites the Commission to indicate how the Pre-Accession Instrument established by Council Regulation
(EC) No 1085/2006 (1) can be used for the protection of the Christian heritage;

15.
Strongly condemns the murders of Hrant Dink, of the Christian priest Andrea Santoro, and of three
Christians in Malatya, the terrorist attack in Ankara and all other acts of politically or religiously motivated
violence; expects the Turkish authorities to fully investigate these cases and to bring all those responsible to
justice; underlines the urgent need to combat efficiently all types of extremism and violence and to ban
them from all levels of public life in Turkey; calls on the Turkish Government to increase the protection of
those groups, minorities or individuals who feel exposed to threats and discrimination;

Calls on the new government to take concrete measures to ensure that full trade union rights are
16.
respected, in line with European and International Labour Organization standards; encourages it to support
intensification of the social dialogue between employers associations and trade unions; asks the Commission
to address this subject with the new government;

17. Welcomes the fact that a considerable number of women in Turkey hold important positions in the
economy and in the academic world, and that more women have been elected to the Turkish parliament
than hitherto; underlines that accessibility of education, equal treatment and economic empowerment of
women are keys to further economic growth and prosperity in Turkey; regrets that violations of women's
rights, and in particular so-called ‘honour crimes’, remain a matter of serious concern; urges the Commis-
sion, therefore, to stress to the new government the need to strengthen its efforts to eradicate violence and
discriminatory practices against women, and stresses that those efforts should include, inter alia, a sustained
public campaign and provision of more shelters for women in distress;

18.
Points to the need for a comprehensive strategy for the socio-economic development of the south-
east of Turkey; calls on the Commission to indicate in which way the Pre-Accession Instrument can be used
to support efforts that will have to be made by the new Turkish Government to develop the south-east of
the country, and to coordinate this assistance with that provided by other international financial institutions;

19.
Is concerned about the consequences of the social, ecological, cultural and geopolitical problems of
the Turkish Southeastern Anatolia Project, in which water barrage projects have a direct impact on the water
supply of the neighbouring countries; calls on the Commission to monitor closely, in its regular report, the
development of trans-boundary water cooperation in line with international conventions, nature and envir-
onmental protection directives and the Water Framework Directive (2), and to promote the application of EU
environmental standards to large scale mining and water barrage projects;

20.
Urges the new government to launch a political initiative favouring a lasting settlement of the Kurd-
ish issue, and to work, with the constructive involvement of the newly elected representatives in the Turkish
Grand National Assembly and the elected mayors and civil society in the south-east, towards significant
improvements in social, economic and cultural life; welcomes President Gül's initiative to visit the south-
east of Turkey for the first time;

(1) OJ L 210, 31.7.2006, p. 82.
(2) Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework

for Community action in the field of water policy (OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1).

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21.
Strongly condemns the violence perpetrated by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and other terror-
ist groups on Turkish soil; expresses its solidarity with Turkey in its fight against terrorism and repeats its
call on the PKK to declare and respect an immediate and unconditional ceasefire; underlines the need to
pursue the fight against terrorism in proportion to the threat posed and with full commitment to the
observance of international legal instruments and standards; stresses that there can never be an excuse for
any kind of violence against civilians;

22.
Is deeply concerned about the consequences of a possible cross-border military action by Turkish
troops in Northern Iraq; appeals to Turkey to refrain from engaging in any disproportionate military opera-
tions violating Iraq's territory, and urges Turkey and Iraq to step up military and police cooperation to
effectively prevent terrorist activities from Northern Iraq in order to de-escalate the tense situation at the
Turkish-Iraqi border; calls on the Council to press for concrete cooperation between Turkey and the Kurdish
Regional Government of Iraq, which should shoulder its responsibility to prevent terrorist attacks from
northern Iraq;

23.
Attaches great importance to Turkey's commitment to good neighbourly relations, in line with the
requirements set out in the Negotiating Framework; reiterates its expectation that Turkey ends any economic
blockade and border closure and refrains from threats or tension-prone military activities in relation to
neighbouring countries; reiterates its call upon Turkey to engage in serious and intensive efforts for the
resolution of outstanding disputes with all its neighbours, in accordance with the UN Charter and other
relevant international conventions, and including a frank and open discussion on past events; reiterates its
call upon the Turkish and Armenian Governments to start a process of reconciliation in respect of the
present and the past, and calls on the Commission to facilitate the Turkish-Armenian reconciliation while
taking advantage of regional cooperation realised within the European Neighbourhood Policy and the Black
Sea Synergy Policy;

24.
Regrets that no substantial progress has been made in reaching a comprehensive settlement of the
Cyprus question; reiterates its call on both parties to adopt a constructive attitude with a view to achieving a
comprehensive settlement within the UN framework, based on the principles upon which the EU is
founded; in this regard, recalls its previous resolutions stating that the withdrawal of Turkish forces would
facilitate the negotiation of a settlement;

25. Welcomes the establishment of an instrument of financial support to encourage the economic devel-
opment of the Turkish Cypriot community; calls on the Commission to report specifically on the imple-
mentation and effectiveness of that instrument;

26.
Stresses the importance of Turkey's potential with regard to the Black Sea region, the South Caucasus
and the Central Asian region in bringing stability, democratic governance, mutual confidence and prosperity
to those regions, in particular through regional cooperation projects; stresses Turkey's role in the Middle
East; calls upon the Commission to strengthen its cooperation with the Turkish Government concerning the
EU's policy towards those regions;

Reminds the Commission of its request for a follow-up to the impact study presented in 2004, and

27.
asks to be provided with it in 2007;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments

28.
and parliaments of the Member States and and the Government and Parliament of Turkey.