newsitems Austrian President Fischer to EF+MEPs on EU - Russia relations : Ready to help find Solutions
Austrian President Fischer to EF+MEPs on EU - Russia relations : Ready to help find Solutions
*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- Experienced, twice Elected President of Austria, Heinz Fischer, Replying to a Question by "Eurofora" at the CoE, shortly after an Official Visit to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergyei Lavrov,, took a Positive stance on the prospect for "Austria to Help the EU develop anew a Friendly Cooperation with Russia" in the foreseable Future, and referred us, for the rest, to what he had "already" said, earlier Today, during his official Speech and Debate with MEPs at CoE's PanEuropean Parliamentary Assembly.
- "I am all for Co-operation and for acting as a Bridge. I am a representative of a country that has good political relationships" with all sides, and "I think that progress can be made on negotiations on Crimea and the Minsk (Peace) process. That seems obvious to me". This includes also a possible exchange of prisoners, as, there too, "I do not rule out processes being set in motion that might lead us to where we want to be", he said earlier, with obvious voluntaristic optimism.
- Meanwhile, " it is our opinion that (EU-USA) Sanctions (on Russia) are not an end in themselves. Of course, it would be good if we can Create a Situation where Europe, United, can decide to Reduce or End the Sanctions. I believe, as the German Foreign Minister does, that we should think in a Step-by-Step way. ...My feeling is that, perhaps in 1 Year, (i.e. during 2017), the process of Reducing Sanctions can Start, but we are already further along than we were. That would be Fine", Fischer Highlighted.
- But, in order to achieve that, First of all, "it is Necessary to make Progress on the Minsk Agreement" (of February 2015. See the relevant "Eurofora" NewsReport: ....), and, for that purpose, "Both Sides must Contribute to such a development".
- In fact, "2 Years ago (i.e. on 2014), when CoE's "Assembly was discussing the temporary Suspension of the Voting rights of members belonging to the Russian Federation’s delegation ... because of the Ukraine crisis and the situation in Crimea", (i.e. initially a Compromise, which was smashed by a last-minute Amendment by a Minority Group adding even Exclusion from PACE's Leading Bodies, which provoked the Withdrawal of all Rusian MEPs), many expected "that the Crisis could be Overcome Swiftly", he pointed out. But, "Today, (i.e. on 2016), 2 Years down the road, Nobody can claim that this Problem has been Resolved", he regretted.
- However, "there are, if I may say so, some Glimmers of Hope. The Minsk talks have been a Positive Development. They have yielded some Results, or at least partial results. The extent of the Confrontation has been Curtailed, and there is Now a Lower Number of Casualties", Fischer noted, (even if some Civilian People reportedly continue to be Killed or Wounded, particularly at the Donetsk/Luhansk Autonomist Regions of Eastern Ukraine).
- Nevertheless, "the basic Root of the Problem is still Unresolved, so the situation is still Far from satisfactory – and indeed Dangerous", the Experienced Austrian President Warned. - And "my impression ...is that Russia can hardly be satisfied with the sanctions and the cooling of its relationship with Europe. At the same time, however, Russia is not – or Not Yet – prepared to pay a reasonable price for a solution. On the other side, Ukraine must be even more Dissatisfied with the present state of affairs, yet it is Not prepared to, or is not in a position to, pay a reasonable price to reach a Solution. By that I mean the exact Implementation of the Content and Chronology of the Minsk Agreements, and (particularly) the ability to Find a workable Arrangement of Self-Government", for the Autonomist Regions of Donetsk-Luhansk, in South-Eastern Ukraine, in line with the main Promisse for a Large De-Centralisation and a Special Status inside Ukraine, already made by its President, Pedro Poroshenko, as early as since his 1st Visit to the European Institutions, Starting by the CoE, back on June 2014, (Comp. relevant "Eurofora"s NewsReport, f.ex. on CoE's "Venice Committee"'s key role), followed and much further developed, in considerable depth and concrete details, by the February 2015 "Minsk" Agreements for Peace, officialy endorsed by both sides on the spot, under the auspices and with the signature of 4 Heads of State/Government from Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany, (Poroshenko; Putin, Hollande and Merkel. See : ....). According to those Minsk Agreements, all the Main Steps, from each side, as well as Dialogue and Settlement of more Concrete Pending Issues, should have approached Conclusions around the End of 2015, but this Rendez-Vous was obviously Delayed in real practice, at least for the Time being.
- But, "there is a corRelation between the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements on the one hand, and an End to Sanctions or at least the Gradual Lifting of Sanctions. ....we believe that this is an Incentive to work even harder towards the implementation of the Minsk agreements", he noted, as far as Russia is concerned. Moreover, "Ukraine and Russia are Neighbours, and I therefore believe that Co-operation is the only way forward ... relations. It will be Damaging to both If their Relations continue to be so Poor". On the Contrary, "it would be a Good thing for Russia and Ukraine if they Improved their relatons;....We live in an Age where All our Countries must Co-exist in Europe", he noted, as far as also Ukraine is concerned, (Comp. also Supra). And, even more Widely, "for me, it remains a basic premise that as far as Europe and Russia are concerned, it is Good, if we have Good Relations. I would also argue that it would be Bad for Europe and Russia, If our Relationship is Bad", the Austrian President stressed.
=> - "In order to Improve relations, we Need to Understand the Position of the Other Side. We need to understand the other. Russia needs to understand what it is that exercises its Partners in Europe (EU) – what we are Concerned about", (probably meaning mainly Territorial Integrity of EU States, in the Borders existing since the End of the 2nd World War : A Principle that Russian President Putin was Vainly trying to promote in a "Hot" Press Conference back on 2007, at the "G8" Heads of State/Government Summit at Heiligendam, Germany, on the occasion, then, of the quite Different, Kosovo Issue inside Serbia. But USA and most EU Countries apparently realized the Topical Importance of the Territorial Integrity Principle rather Later-on, after the 2008 Georgian and particularly the 2014 Ukranian Crisis. However, in that latest case, it was, obviously also another basic Principle of International Law whichhad been breached : that of "Non Interference in the Domestic Affairs of a Sovereign Country", as even Chinese President Xi Ping observed, during his 1st Visit to the EU, in a Press Conference in Germany, on Spring 2014).
+ "Conversely, Europe (EU) must understand what it is that Russia is concerned about, and has been concerned about over the past 25 years since 1991", (i.e. since theDislocation of the ex-URSS and even of its succcessor, the CIS). - In this regard, "My personal view ... is that a policy that would lead us, within the foreseeable future, to Ukraine’s Accession to NATO, is one that, for Europe (EU), Ukraine and Russia, would ultimately bring more Disadvantages than advantages", the Experienced, Twice Elected Austrian President Warned, (obviously pointing at the Fact that, particularly at a notoriously Strategic Area, and mainly so Close to Moscow itself, etc., Russia had understandable concerns, even of Military Security, paticularly in that case - i.e. if Ukraine departed from a Neutrality Principle, contrary to the 1994 Founding Agreement which had initialy endorsed its Independence).
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Scientific innovation joined to Faith for Human Rights, Eastern Partnership and fight against the Crisis, but above all, the need to overcome the "Crisis of Trust" from EU Citizens, are the main priorities for new EU Parliament's President, Polish Jerzy Buzek, that a 555-votes-strong majority of MEPs on July 14, Strasbourg made a living symbol of the fact that, 20 years after the fall of Berlin Wall (1989 - 2009) there is no more an Eastern or Western Europe, but only one Europe, as the head of the largest group of MEPs, ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Joseph Daul, stressed after the event.
Speaking later to a group of Strasbourg's Journalists, including "EuroFora", the new EU Parliament's President clarified his stance on concrete topical issues, as f.ex. that of Turkey's controversial EU bid, which was one of the main issues of the June 2009 Electoral campain, clearly won by his party of ChristianDemocrats/EPP : - "At present, Turkey does not fullfil none of EU conditions", he stressed, (See infra).
Buzek is well known in Strasbourg and to "EuroFora" as EU Rapporteur for the Framework Program of Scientific Research and Development of Technologies. A Natural Science Professor from the Historic and Religious landmark Polish City of Częstochowa, active in the famous Solidarnosk grass-roots social movement, he served 4 years as Prime Minister (1997-2001), before being elected as MEP in 2004 and 2009, after he brillantly won the latest EU Election at the head of his party (EPP) almost doubling the number of its MEPs from 15 to 28 !
- "Innovation" and "Energy safety", as well as fight against the "Cimat change", but also "Eastern Partnership", the "Mediterranean", "Strategic partnerships" with Russia, the USA, etc, and the search for "solutions to the Economic Crisis" that EU Citizens "expect" from us, will be his "priorities", announced from the outset the new EU Parliament's President, reminding also that the quest for "Human and Civic Rights" played an important role in his experience with the Solidarnosc grass-roots social movement in Poland's History
But, the most important of all, is the urgent need to overcome the "Crisis of Trust" between EU Institutions and the People he stressed : - EU "Citizens often don't understand us", denounced Buzek, launcing a call to "do anything for EU Citizens to understand our work" in EU Parliament : "We (MEPs) need to make EU Citizens involved" in "what we are doing every week, in Strasbourg and Brussels", he proposed. Pointing f.ex. to the hot "Debates" with "strong arguments" exchanged between MEPs during the preparation of their Legislative Decisions, in Committees, delivering often hard struggles between initially opposed points of view, long before forging a majority at the final vote, sometimes more than a year..
Therefore, EU Parliament will be "open to your criticism, for discussion and exchange of views", he promissed to Journalists in Strasbourg.
In this way, Buzek, in fact, highlighted "EuroFora"s main idea, that we strongly advocate since 1997-2007, to systematicaly and actively involve EU Citizens in public debates during the decision-making process of important EU measures, which affect their lives and the society in which they live, (and not only just a few weeks each 4 or 5 Years at the eve of EU Elections)...
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This is related also to the symbolic gift that Buzek chose to give to the out-going former EU Parliament's President, Hans Gert Poettering, (2007-2009), his collegue in the ChristianDemocrats/EPP, who brillantly won 2009 EU Elections in Germany : A genuine statute of sainte Barbara crafted in Silesia's black Coal by Polish Miners : Those simple but strong people who fought for social change against some technocrats and bureaucrats disguissed into so-called "real-socialists" of old times. (PHOTO).
It's enough to have seen a popular open air mass, at Warsaw's center, with many thousands of people, old and young, simple workers and intellectuals mixed together, with references to Poland's history and struggles for survival and liberty, through various ages, (as fex. that organized at the eve of CoE's 2005 panEuropean Heads of State and Government for the beatification of late Pope John-Paul II), in order to understand what such symbols mean..
But, overcoming the "Crisis of Trust" with EU Citizens obviously implies also to rectify any errors done in the past, fex. on Turkey's controversial EU bid, with controversial decisions taken in 1999 and 2004 to give a "candidate" status and to start EU negotiations, provoking an unprecedented series of 3 "No" to EuroReferenda and 3 Majoriy Abstentions in EU Parliament Elections : 1999, 2005 and 2009, (even if the latest one succeeded to decelerate and almost stop the drop of participation rates, opening hopes for vote's revival after an electoral campaign clearly critical to Turkey's claims in several mainstream EU countries)
Therefore, Buzek was faced with manifold critical Questions on EU Enlargement, most of them citting concrete examples of certain political problems : But his replies were almost always given as a matter of general principle :
F.ex. Questioned on the suspension of EU - Croatia talks because of a Border conflict with EU Member Slovenia, Buzek prefered to speak about principles :
- "We know that during Enlargement, the process can be blocked by failure to resolve this kind of issues", This concerns also other enlargments' cases", and "these rules are always in force" he warned.
But Buzek avoided to directly reply to a queston on "French and German EPP' calls to define the Borders of Europe", as a German journalist asked him by making a reference to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and German Chancellor Angie Merkel's, critical statements on Turkey at the June 2009 Electoral campain.
- "Concerning Enlargement, there's always the same rules : There have to be Criteria, which have to be respected if a Country wants to join the EU", he started to simply reply.
- "For my country (Poland) it took us 15 Years to fullfil these Criteria", Buzek reminded, indicating, if proportions are kept, that Turkey, fex. would have to spend some 25 years before eventually joining the EU..
- "Countries wishing to join the EU need to Change their Systems", as we (Poland and other former Eastern European Countries) did, he stressed.
- "'For me, meeting the condition of Human Rights is one of the Key conditions for membership in the EU", preferring again to speak from the point of view of General Principles, on the occasion of an untimely question on Serbia (which is not even a candidate yet)...
- "Turkey" has, "first of all", to fullfil (EU) Copenhagen criteria". Bevause, currently, none of them is fullfiled by Turkey", New EU Parliament's President, denounced, speaking later to a group of Journalists, including "EuroFora".
In particular, on Human Rights : - "We (EU) can never forget Human Rights", because "this is at the very Foundations of the EU", Buzek added.
On the contrary, when he referred to EU Enlargment for the "Western Balkans Countries ", Buzek appeared upbeat, finding "promising situations", despite "difficulties" in the Past, since "Countries are queuing to become EU members", and this "generated changes", as he said.
As for Russia, Buzek observed that it was a "very important" country, located "in the same Continent", Europe, "close to our borders", and "we need eachother". "But Russia' has 'differend poblems : "They claim that their system is Democratic, but rules are differend", and we must be "aware of such differencies", fex. "on Human Rights", that we can't ignore, as he said;
Concerning China, where a journalist observed that the recipient of EU Parliament's latest "Sakharov prize" for freedom of thought is "still in prison", Buzek found that since the 1999 events in Tien Amin square, "we see differencies on Human Rights still today", and expressed his "support" for those who try to ameliorate the situation.
On the contrary, speaking recently to "EuroFora" he strongly supported the idea for an EU - Ukraine cooperation, fex. between Airbus and Antonov, in order to build a less costly but more performant than the old and problematic A400M, new Military Transport Airplane : - "They (Ukranian Antonov Company) can certainly do it. I'm sure they can. It's a good Idea, and I'd be glad if it was done", he told us. (See : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/airbusantonov.html )