kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
we must see iraq's transition also in the regional context in particular with respect to the dramatic and violent developments unfolding across the border in syria which we have just discussed but also iran's increasing influence.
in this respect i would also like to emphasise the important role of the european parliament.
this partnership is not of course without challenges.
this adds to the difficulty of iraq's democratic endeavours but makes its success even more important.
the eeas is discussing with iraqi counterparts the way forward so that progress is made as soon as possible.
the parliamentary cooperation committee should be an important forum for the european and iraqi parliaments providing excellent opportunities to exchange on democratic practice and provide further support to iraq's transition.
the agreement will support iraq's reform and development efforts and facilitate its integration into the wider international economy.
the partnership and cooperation agreement therefore arrives at a very timely moment since it creates a platform and increases the eu leverage to address these concerns with iraqi counterparts.
the eu has a long standing commitment to support iraq in its reconstruction and transition to democracy with the objective of helping to build a stable prosperous and democratic iraq reintegrated in regional and global structures.
we are committed to boosting trade and investment between the eu and iraq.
the human rights situation continues to be of serious concern with the increased use of the death penalty an unsatisfactory situation for women and vulnerable groups including minorities.
it brings together the eu and its member states and it is the main instrument to show the eu's unified determination to build a long term partnership with a stable and democratic iraq not just for today or tomorrow but for many years to come.
the partnership and cooperation agreement with iraq is a non preferential agreement based on most favoured nation principles.
with the partnership and cooperation agreement we have opened a new chapter in our bilateral relationship.
but it also provides a platform to talk about difficult issues including the promotion of security the cooperation in countering terrorism and arms proliferation and the promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
there has been some progress but there are still a number of challenges in the critical process facilitated by the united nations with our full support.
let me stress the example of energy where the eu can help iraq to harness its enormous energy potential while iraq can contribute to the diversification of the eu's energy supply and to its energy security as it is a potential source country for the southern corridor.
the agreement also provides ample opportunities for enhanced cooperation on sectoral policies across the board from energy and environment to education and innovation.
iraq is a young democracy and the road ahead will not always be smooth.
i know the reality.
mr president i had prepared a speech this afternoon but this morning i received a letter from the council of representatives in iraq signed by two committee chairmen and five members of the iraqi parliament.
let me read that letter it was with great dismay and shock that we learned that the european parliament is about to adopt a resolution on iraq in the coming week in strasbourg which seems completely out of touch with the real situation and everyday challenges on the ground.
according to draft texts that we have seen on the european parliament website the resolution applauds the government on many points including providing security and safety to the iraqis.
its main focus seems to be on boosting trade and endorsing the maliki government which to us is completely incomprehensible.
in a time when our country faces one of it major political crises with our country's vice president sentenced to death in absentia and the home and office of a minister raided by government forces and his computer and personal belongings confiscated without any justification while the number of executions has reached record high levels and the masses are outraged in daily protests over arbitrary incarceration and mistreatment of women in iraqi prisons with several provincial governments calling on maliki to go
we would have expected the house of democracy of the european people to be more attentive to the human rights and democracy which are wearing thinner every day.
there is no mention of any of these major concerns in this resolution and it gives the impression that it is designed to boost the oppressor instead of defending the victims and those who are oppressed.
even if the eu governments might lean towards putting business and trade over human rights the european parliament which represents the people should blow the whistle and raise the flag of human rights and the universal human values that are equal to all of us no matter our differences in culture race or religion.
we therefore strongly urge you not to adopt this resolution which would only be used as a tool of further suppression of our beleaguered people.
bearing this in mind i am concerned about signing the agreement at this time.
only today ten people were reportedly killed in an attack on political offices in kirkuk.
the ecr my group accepts the need for a pca;
we must engage economically and politically with the iraqis and help them to realise their aspirations as best we can.
we cannot ignore the human rights outlook well over a hundred inmates were executed last year with numerous reports of police torture and forced confessions while women and minorities such as the christians face acute lack of state protection and homophobic violence has reportedly been increasing.
there are also grave fears over the freedom of expression and the safety of journalists.
on a separate note we are seriously concerned over the threat to send pmoi inmates now moved to camp liberty from camp ashraf back to iran with a direct possibility of torture and execution.
i do however support the prosperity and stability of the kurdish autonomous democratic region which is now exporting oil directly to turkey.
i do not see her name on the list to come in three weeks' time you are coming?
are you aware that hundreds of thousands of people are demonstrating on the streets in unprecedented demonstrations?
i think that is the risk that we run if we do not fully engage in this process and seize this opportunity.
a partnership through this process with iraq while also recognising the major challenges that exist in terms of religious minorities.
many members have made reference to the very serious question of christian minorities prisoners' rights the rise in executions which i addressed in my opening remarks in respect of the death penalty and the abuse of the death penalty which is a major cause for concern.
i will just try to address some specific questions and issues that have been raised.
i think again it is important to stress that these tensions are the very reason why this agreement is so important.
it is more crucial that the eu remain close to the iraqi nation the iraqi government and the iraqi population in order to make progress and to help to deal with this big challenge of the tensions between the various communities;
and that we do it from a position of influence and leverage.
this is an extremely complex and very significant challenge not only with regard to the present conditions of all those who have been transferred to the new camp but also to the whole question about the future and how we can
i think this very clearly requires constructive engagement from eu member states a willingness to face this challenge and put in place practical solutions.
it also requires the full cooperation of our international partners and we are working on that.
it is an ongoing process.
we are giving it constant attention and it is under discussion as i said amongst the member states and indeed with our international partners.
i just want to reiterate the point that i think this agreement is extremely important.
it is a key tool a tool that can be used constructively by the european union to promote and defend our common interests and our shared values.
the eu will focus on delivering capacity building programmes and technical assistance where they are most needed and where they have the greatest potential impact.
for iraq remains today more than ever very clearly an indispensable strategic partner with the european union at a moment when as i said earlier the whole region is facing major challenges and really does need to build a solid and very serious partnership
i met them alongside their local mp mike freer and my colleague struan stevenson who is quite rightly a hero to those dissidents who have endured the horrors of the camp.
the stories i heard from the former residents were extremely shocking.
one woman related how her brother had been killed in the camp by iraqi forces.
we cannot turn our backs on the refugees of camp ashraf and the new camp which is almost mockingly named camp liberty.
the challenge of rebuilding iraq is a great one but we must never lose sight of the fragile human rights situation in the country.
the situation in the country is worsening.
at such a critical time the eu is concluding a partnership and cooperation agreement with iraq.
this year started with the killing of an assyrian woman.
she was not the first to be murdered because of her religion.
their churches are under attack and perpetrators are not being brought to justice. in a country where individual ethnic groups have their own police force the assyrians lack any police protection.
they are also alarmed by a wave of assassinations and abductions targeting their community.
they face discrimination in the labour market and suffer from arbitrary detentions.
i support the partnership and cooperation agreement not in spite of but because of these problems.
the people of iraq need a deep sustainable democracy based on human rights equality and the rule of law.
this is my opinion.
internally with my romanian experience in mind the main challenge to the iraqi authorities is to provide their citizens with basic services such as decent living conditions health and education and above all security.
however such differences do not annul the value of the present agreement which will hopefully provide the framework for their discussion.
it is also how we implement it and it is about attitudes.
lots of people in our european institutions have realised that transparency and openness is not dangerous.
we still have work to do.
they have improved during the last ten years.
in this context the last european council concerning the figure for fast start financing for the first three years gives an important impetus to the ongoing negotiations;
we also need a framework for adapting to climate changes as well as for technology transfer and capacity building.
however the council believes that there is a larger potential for actions to come from these countries especially china and india.
in this context the eu will reiterate its demands to other developed countries to take on an ambitious agenda and to continue to seek measurable reportable and verifiable mitigation actions by developing countries.
as the prime minister said this morning we are still confident that we can have a successful outcome in copenhagen which allows us to keep the global temperature increase below two o c above the pre industrial level.
the larger developing countries have put their bids to limit their growth of emissions on the table china india indonesia brazil south africa and south korea and this accounts for significant contributions.
that also strengthens the credibility of the european union.
we need financing in the framework of a fair and equitable governance system for mitigation adaptation capacity building and technology transfer to developing countries.
we hope that they will provide the necessary political impetus on the crucial issues of mitigation and financing.
the eu will therefore ask them to increase their efforts further in the context of an ambitious agreement.
when this can be achieved is too early to say but we should aim for a deal within six months after the finalisation of the conference.
the eu has put forward proposals that the negotiation for a legally binding treaty for the period starting one january two thousand and thirteen should be finalised as soon as possible after the copenhagen conference.
the european council furthermore recognised the need for a significant increase in public and private financial flows up to.
it is not an offer or a bid from the eu. there is also a wide range of other estimates from other sources but it is the commission estimate that the council has endorsed and believes to be the best assessment. the overall level of international public support required is estimated to lie in the range of eur twenty two billion to eur fifty billion per year to. two thousand and twenty
as you have pointed out in your question the october european council has endorsed the commission estimate that a total net incremented cost of adaptation and mitigation in developing countries could amount to around eur one hundred billion per year by two thousand and twenty to be met through a combination of developing countries' own efforts the international carbon market and international public finance;
and this is what the commission has estimated the need to be.
fast start financing in order to initiate immediate actions and to prepare for collective and efficient action in the medium and longer term with a special emphasis on these developed countries.
the eu and its member states are ready to take a fair share of that amount but all countries except the poorest ones should contribute to international public financing through a comprehensive distribution key based on emission levels and gdp.
two thousand and twenty the current financial architecture needs to be revised and where necessary reformed in order to ensure its capacity to meet the challenge.
with this commitment i think we did send a very strong message to the negotiators at their ongoing conference and strengthened our credibility.
in particular under council directive two thousand forty three ec of twenty nine june two thousand implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin all persons are protected against discrimination on grounds of race or ethnic origin regardless of their legal status.
the scope of legal protection of this directive includes the areas of employment social protection education and access to goods and services.
we need to have national ownership of the process and we need to look at governance. that is also explained in the paper from the commission which is now out for consultation among the member states.
i think the open method of coordination has advantages but it needs to be improved.
all that will possibly fit into the new strategy.
how can we create a europe that is more competitive with more entrepreneurship and avoid social exclusion and unemployment? how do we invest in research and development in order for europe to be the strong global player that we want it to be in the economic field?
we need to involve much more local and regional authorities because they are the ones who do the real implementation.
the council discussions are taking a lot of time.
it is a ground breaking proposal and it has a broad scope with enormous practical and financial implications.
we have had negotiations.
we had lots of working groups within the council.
we have made progress but unfortunately i have to be very honest with you we have not reached the consensus that is required yet.
but we will continue until the end of our presidency and i am quite optimistic that the spanish presidency will do their utmost to reach a solution.
i was not exactly sure about the question.
i think as the real political negotiations will start tomorrow with as you say prime ministers and presidents coming from all over the world we should not talk about a plan b' already.
this is the most important question of our generation;
minister we have noted in recent days that the president of the united states has been in discussions with certain leaders in the developing world.
has the european union joined in those discussions in trying to bridge the gap with the united states and others to try to bring the remaining issues to a resolution?
it is very important that we continue with these meetings at a high level with the social partners and the member states in order to exchange best practices.
climate issues have been top of the agenda on all these occasions so there has been a wide variety of meetings.
it is a combination and that is also very much due to the fact of the economic crisis.
but as i said to the honourable member discussions have just started;
i suppose the best example of that is the arrival today in copenhagen of the president of the united states and the prime minister of china something unthinkable a few years ago.
in times of economic crisis it is always the most vulnerable who suffer the most children young people old people people with disabilities and that is why we as responsible politicians have to be very aware of this.
we need to have the overall directive first and then work from there.
i think we need to work on the overall directive first.
we know we need to do this;
discussions are ongoing. they have been mandated.
we are aware of the improvements and the situation is fragile.
but there are improvements and these institutional arrangements that i refer to that have been done are a good step in the right direction.
we do understand the importance of this directive and we have been working really really hard to get it into place.
but as i have said i cannot change the fact that we need unanimity and the unanimity is not there.
there are lots of working groups meeting and working all the time;
it would be unfortunate to separate the different parts of the directive because the whole purpose and this was very much also encouraged by parliament was to have a comprehensive directive on discrimination.
if we start to pick up pieces i think that thought would be lost and i think it would be deplorable.
we also adopted the recommendation to put an end to the inconsistency with the broad guidelines of the economic policies and the risks of jeopardising the proper functioning of economic and monetary union given the continuous loss of competitiveness of the greek economy and the widening of external imbalances as well as by the large spread in financial markets vis vis benchmark
as regards the later years of the programme we call for further adjustments of a permanent nature continued tax administration reforms and an improvement in the budgetary framework.
our recommendations will be discussed by the eurogroup and ecofin next week and then a first report should come in mid march elaborating on the calendar for implementation to safeguard the two thousand and ten targets. then on a quarterly basis starting in may greece should report on the way in which they are responding to the council decision and recommendation. each report will be subject to a commission assessment.
and the commission announced its immediate initiative on audit powers for eurostat.
as far as the recommendation on the excessive deficit procedure is concerned our recommendations as regard measures to be taken this year rely fully on the measures announced by the greek authorities in their stability programme. they include measures to be implemented in the first quarter of this year such as wage bill
economy. it deserves support in this difficult task and the commission supports
as regards the stability programme the commission fully supports greece in its efforts to redress a difficult economic and fiscal situation.
year as well as the greek authorities' readiness to adopt and swiftly implement additional measures if needed.
this programme displays an appropriate degree of ambition given the sheer size of the consolidation needed and is a front loaded programme.
given recent market developments interest and expenditure projections also seem to be on the low side.
in the eurozone perhaps the ecb should have an oversight of accumulative debt issuance and advise member states on responsible management.
the maturity profile of debt is left to member states but the cumulative effect of tapping the market simultaneously leaves the eu exposed in times of crisis leading to difficulties in raising capital in the markets.
greece has to raise eur thirty one billion over the next few weeks.
these measures affect the secondary market in securities but i believe there is a strong case to apply the same principles to the primary market particularly in the unique situation of the eurozone debt issuing members.
certain euro member states are facing the same issues right now.
nevertheless the effects of this crisis have repercussions for the eu and the ecb in terms of having to orchestrate a solution international confidence in the euro model and the future smooth operation of the euro sovereign debt markets. we have spent a lot of time and energy in the last year investigating procedures oversight transparency and effective risk management of international capital market participants.
specifically in the uk northern rock became insolvent as it raised money in the short term markets to fund long term liabilities. when the market questioned the business model and refused to lend the business model de facto collapsed.
madam president sovereign debt spreads have widened dramatically over recent months for certain euro member states leading to much speculation in the markets about defaults bail outs and even the viability of certain member states within the euro framework.
i propose that the ecb whilst not having any power over budgets or capital raising can have an input over the debt maturity profile if it felt that a member state is over exposed through short term market movements.
in conclusion a simple first step would be for the eu and specifically eurozone member states to have a sustainable debt maturity strategy as the absolute debt level at this time is less important than the amount of debt which is up for renewal.
madam president there is a natural relationship between the current health of a state's economy and the value of its currency. as the economy grows so should the value of its currency so that it can enjoy the cheapness of goods and services that it chooses to import.
however the currency of a nation trapped in the euro straitjacket cannot adjust to the needs of its economy and people.
now it is strangling greece and other client states of the euro.
this should be a warning for any country outside the eurozone.
equally as an economy stagnates or even declines so will the value of its currency leading to an export boom and recovery of the economy assuming of course its manufacturing and service industries have not been destroyed by globalisation.
in the short term you will see the needs of your economy unattended.
mr barroso this morning talked about the european dream for the good people of greece it has become the european nightmare.
it seems promises of strength through solidarity could not be further from the truth.
with little fiscal coordination and no treasury membership of the euro is by no means an elixir for good economic health.
madam president what is the future of the euro in the light of the problems in greece and for that matter spain italy portugal and ireland?
we must wait to see how greece will react to becoming an economic protectorate of the european union and whether it will bring civil unrest.
it must be of some reassurance to the uk that we never joined the euro.
perhaps member states and especially the eurozone states should think long and hard about the here and now before turning attention to talks on economic policy post two thousand and twenty when there might not even be a euro to protect.
the problem for the sixteen nations in the eurozone is who pulls the purse strings.
it turns out that when all turns sour no one will bail you out. instead they take the opportunity to seize greater control while you are on your knees.