Alan M. Dukes
Ceist:74 Mr. Dukes asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the EU Foreign Ministers' meeting in Marseilles, France with Ministers from the Mediterranean countries. [27569/00]
Written Answers. - Ministerial Meetings.
I attended the fourth Euro-Mediterranean minis terial meeting of Foreign Ministers under the Barcelona Process which took place in Marseille on 15/16 November. I have arranged for the Presidency's formal conclusions, issued after the meeting, to be placed in the Library.
The meeting began on the evening of 15 November with an opening session and working dinner devoted entirely to the situation in the Middle East. The second session on the morning of 16 November considered ways of reinvigorating the Barcelona Process, as well as a stock-taking five years after the process was launched at Barcelona. This was followed by a working lunch at which Ministers considered the state of play of the draft Euro-Mediterranean Charter for Peace and Stability. The final session was devoted to consideration of the social aspects of the process.
As regards the situation in the Middle East, the Palestinian and the other Arab Foreign Ministers called for an immediate end to artillery and missile attacks against Palestinian communities and for Israeli forces to withdraw to their positions of 28 September. The Israeli Foreign Minister blamed the Palestinian Authority for the violence and called on President Arafat to bring it to an end. In my own interventions, I stressed the urgent need to focus on confidence building measures in order to prepare the way to a return to negotiations. The Ministers called for greater involvement of the European Union vis-à-vis all parties to foster dialogue and restore trust and confidence. The EU reiterated its willingness to put its efforts at the service of the parties in order to facilitate the conclusion of peace agreements and to help implement them.
The Ministers considered that preparation of the Euro-Mediterranean Charter for Peace and Stability had provided the opportunity for a deepening of political dialogue. They welcomed the work that had been done. The draft charter is based on an overall approach to stability, taking into account all of its political, economic, financial, cultural, social and human aspects. It takes the form of an evolutionary, non-legally binding, framework agreement serving as a political instrument for the gradual implementation of the principles of the Barcelona Declaration with regard to the global issues of peace and stability. The Ministers decided to defer adoption of the charter but confirmed the importance they attached to the charter, which should in the future play a positive role in tandem with the development of confidence and the strengthening of stability in the region, notably with a view to the follow up to the peace process.
The meeting noted with great interest the proposals for revitalising the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership which had been put forward by the European Commission in its communication "Reinvigorating the Barcelona Process". This communication, which stressed the importance of the Marseille meeting and the intention that it should lead to fresh prospects for the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, had been presented to the General Affairs Council on 18 September 2000 by Commissioner Patten. At Marseilles, the EU confirmed its willingness to strengthen the Mediterranean dimension of its external relations and drew attention to the objectives of the strategy for the Mediterranean adopted by the European Council at its meeting in Feira in Portugal in June 2000.
Where economic and financial matters are concerned, Ministers had a detailed discussion on developments since the Barcelona Declaration was adopted in 1995. The meeting noted that the funding available for the MEDA II Programme, which is the EU's main programme for assisting the Mediterranean partners, had been fixed at 5.35 billion for the period 2000-06. They discussed ways of simplifying and improving procedures for managing the MEDA II Programme. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to the objectives of the Barcelona Declaration with the aim of establishing an area of shared prosperity and to achieving a free trade area by 2010. They noted the encouraging signs of progress towards more co-operation between the Mediterranean partners. There was general agreement on the need to speed up the process of negotiation and ratification of the remaining Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements, which Ministers saw as providing an important catalyst for economic development and also on the need for greater liberalisation of trade.
A consensus was reached on the need to take greater account of the social effects of economic transition and the importance of the human dimension of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. Views were exchanged on possibilities for co-operation in relevant areas, including education and training and the promotion of cultural contacts.