EUParliament Warns Turkey against Continuing disproportionate Military Attack on Syrian Kurds Region

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- A Strong Majority in EU Parliament, adopting a last-minute Amendment Today, "Warned" Turkey "against the Continuaton of disproportionate actions" with its "Military Intervention in (the) Kurdish Majority Region of Syria" in "Afrin". The Text had been Tabled by the 2 Biggest Political Groups : those of ChristianDemocrats/EPP and Socialists, together with the Rightists of "EFDD".

This comes shortly after French Army Minister, Florence Parly, reportedly called Turkey to Stop its operations inside Syria, while President Emmanuel Macron, in 2 successive Statements, had also Warned Ankara that, if the Turkish Military did not stay where it was until that Day, then, its Attacks would be assimilated to an "Invasion", provoking "a Serious Problem", (which would be Raised inside the EU, NATO, etc).

+ Moreover, about 100 MEPs, mainly of Rightist Groups, (such as ENF and EFDD, where participate Parties in Coalition Governments Chairing the EU during 2018, as Bulgaria and Austria, etc), as well as several Other MEPs from Various Political Horizons, Voted Today an Amendment "Calling for an Immediate Retreat of Turkish Armed Forces from Syrian Territory" in general, "and for an Immediate CeaseFire", while also "Heavily Condemning Any further Military Action in Syria by the Turkish Military".

++ They were practically Added to anOther 100 MEPs, mainly of Leftist Groups, (such as EuroLeft, Greens, etc), but also from various Other Political Horizons (f.ex. Socialists, Liberals, etc), who had Already Signed a Written Statement, from the Beginning of this Week, "Urging the EU Commission and EU Member States to ... Ask Turkey to immediately Stop its Military Attacks" "against Afrin, a Kurdish Region at Northern Syria", which "occurs withOut Any Provocation, Nor Attack from those Kurds or from Syria", as they observed.

-------------------------------------

  The Total Number of MEPs Voting to Stop and/or Withdraw Turkish troops from Afrin would have, normally, been quite Bigger, if the President of the ENF Group (Rightists), Dr. Edouard Ferrand, father of 5, had Not Died, Suddenly, aged Only 53 y.o., at the Eve of this Plenary Session, as EU Parliament's President, Antonio Tajani, announced officially Last Monday, asking to keep 1 Minute of Silence in his Memory.

ENF Group MEPs asked to Postpone the Votes, in order to Attend Ferrand's Funeral in Paris, but this was Refused by a majority of opposed MEPs, so, it's obvious that, in fact, there were More MEPs who really Wanted to Vote for the "Immediate Retreat" of Turkish Military from the Kurdish Region of Syria, But were Hindered....

----------------------

+++ Almost 200 MEPs, from Various Political Horizons and/or EU Countries, went on to Vote another Amendment (tabled by the "EuroLeft") aiming to Explicitate the "illegal" nature of the "Turkish Military Intervention in Afrin".

--------------------

Meanwhile, EU Commission's vice-President, and EU High Representative on External Action, Frederica Mogherini, during an EU Parliament's Debate on Tuesday, expressed "Deep Concern" First of all about "the Humanitarian Consequences" of Turkey's Military Attack in Syria's Kurdish Region of Afrin, where many Civilian People (reportedly More than 151, including Children) were already Killed, while several Thousands are becoming Refugees/Displaced People, in Addition to obvious "Political" Risks to Hamper International Efforts to Find a Peacefull Solution to the Syrian Conflict, (mainly through UN Geneva Talks), while also Not making Turkey's security better, (if it doesn't even Worsen it), as she Carefully Warned...

--------------------------------------------

 
+ Moreover, several Mainstream Medias, in France, the UK, USA, etc., had just Strongly Denounced the Horrible spectacle of the Mutilated body of a Kurdish Woman Militant, Sullied and Trampled UnderFoot by a Band of Cowards Islamist Gangs systematically used by the Turkish Army for its Invasion at Afrin, as revealed a Video obtained by the well-known London-based NGO "Observatory on Human Rights in Syria", the Atrocious Images of which were Published and/or Described also at Establishment's Newspapers both of the Right (as f.ex. "Figaro"), and of the Left (f.ex. "Guardian"), or others, (f.ex. "Independent"), etc.

Shocked by such a Blatant and Sadic War Crime, Exceptionaly, "Figaro "publised an Article stressing at its Headlines, that France was now Obliged to "Choose" between "Islamists" Radicals around Turkey, and the Syrian Kurdish People, who notoriously helped Save many People and Liberate most Territories from ISIS and other Deadly Islamist Terrorists targetting innocent Civilians...

This also gave, inevitably, a Topical Feeling to the (otherwise naive) Headline of a parallel Article, recently published at Mainstream "Jerusalem Post" by a Couple of Writers linked to USA's Washington DC, with the premonitory claim that the Syrian "Kurdish Fight is Humanity's Fight" : Indeed, it was naturally Awfull and Scandalous to see that those People who notoriously Risked their Lives to Help EU, Russia and USA, as well as other Allies, to succesfully Fight against ISIS' Deadly Islamist Terrorists (cowardly Targetting innocent Civilian People everywhere, with particularly Bloody Massacres throughout the EU, in Russia, USA, etc), Faced Nowadays, Deadly Military Attacks added to Vile, Atrociously InHuman and Degrading Treatments, without any elementary Respect not even for their Body after being Killed by the Turkish Military and its Cronies, who notoriously were, during many Years, ...ISIL's Islamist Terrorists' local Suppliers, massively Offering and Exploiting Jihadists' arrivals and departures, Traffics of Arms, Stolen Oil/Gas or Cultural Heritage Artworks, Money Laundering, even Fake Passports/ID Cards' traffic for infiltration of Terrorists, etc, as it's well known...

Leftist Turkish MEP from Germany, Kurkcu, recently Reminded, at CoE's PanEuropean Parliamentary Assembly, at the End of January 2018, in Strasbourg, that a Popular "Symbol" of that Heroic Resistance and finally succesfull Fight had become also thoe World Famous Syrian Kurdish Women, who helped Liberate also many Yazidi a.o. Women kidnapped and abused as "Sex Slaves" etc. by ISIS' Jihadists, (as those 2 Vistims who were awarded CoE's and EU's Prizes for Human Rights and Freedom of Conscience recently in Strasbourg : See ... + ...), Pictured at Global Mainstream Medias' FrontPage Headlines, such as in "TIMES" Magazine, etc., (See relevant Photo, and "Eurofora"s NewsReport from PACE's Debate at: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/pacebureauslamsturkishinvasioninsyria.html).

Such Facts, apparently Moved some Officials inside EU Parliament, given that it Symbolically Decided to place, this Week in Strasbourg, its Debate on Turkey on Tuesday Afternoon, after an Introductory Debate on ..." Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation", and Locating the Turkish Problem only Between ...ZImbabwe and Venezuela (sic !), (even if it might be quite Unfair for Zimbabwe at the current situation, as an "Eurofora"s fan observed... See: http://www.eurofora.net/forum/index.php/topic,870.msg1152.html + relevant Photo of EU's Agenda)...

=> So that Many MEPs, from Various Political Horizons, both from the Right and from the Left, asked (during the Debate of Tuesday) for "Sanctions" to be Imposed on Turkey.

+ Around 70 MEPs went, Today, as far as to Vote even a very "Hot" Amendment, (Tabled by Rightists, but Voted by 2 Political Groups and Various Other MEPs), "Calling (EU)'s Member States to put a Definitive End to the (Controversial and UnPopular) Negotiations on the Accession of Turkey to the EU withOut Delay", and to "Definitively Suspend the Pre-Accession Funds", as well as "to Stop Negotiations on the (Extension of) Customs Union between the EU and Turkey".

Meanwhile, speaking on behalf of the Biggest Political Group, that of ChristianDemocrats/EPP, on Tuesday's Debate, even Romanian MEP Cristian Dan Preda, who had, in the Past, personally Supported Turkey's controversial and unpopular EU Accession bid, (as he Reminded), nevertheless, "Now", "Believed" that it was "Inconcievable to Continue Talking about Turkey's Accession into the EU", but, on the Contrary, EU should Better think about a kind of "Partnership" with Ankara, instead, and "Focus on Human Rights", (as concluded the New vice President of EU Parliament's Human Rights' Committee).

=> EU Parliament's Resolution, Adopted Today (Thursday Noon) by a Strong Majority, Reminds, in this regard, that, Already, recently, the "Parliament called, in November 2016, for the Accession process with Turkey to be Frozen, and, in July 2017, to be Suspended", particularly "if" the Controversial "Constitutional Changes" pushed by a seriously Contested Referendum, "were implemented unchanged", (i.e. something which, reportedly, has already started to be done).

+ Moreover, Today's Resolution, topically "Reiterates" EU Parliament's "position of November 2017, in which it Called for Funds destinated to Turkish Authorities" as "Pre-Accession Assistance", "to be Made Conditional on Improvements in the field of Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law".

Already, "Turkey’s pre-accession funds have been Cut by EUR 105 million, ...with a further EUR 70 million held in Reserve, Until the country makes ‘measurable Sufficient Improvements’" in this regard, the Adopted Resolution also Reminds.

+ EU Parliament also Adopted Today, by a Strong Majority, an Amendment to "Condemn the most Recent Arrests", by Ankara's Regime, of reportedly More than 600 Dissidents inside Turkey itself, "for expessing their Opposition to the Turkish Military Intervention in Afrin".

Those +600 Oppressed Anti-War Dissidents include "Journalists, Activists, Doctors and Ordinary Citizens", reportedly publishing mainly at the World Wide Web, and they were Added to  "at least 148 Academics, from public and private Universities, who Signed the "Academics for Peace" Petition", and whose "Detention and Trial" was Also "Condemned" by EU Parliament today.

__________________________

The moves came at the Eve of EU's Foreign Ministers' "Gymnich" Meeting, Next Week in Sofia (Bulgaria) on February 15-16., and in the run-up of an EU - Turkey Summit Next Month, which has just been Pushed for Later than Initially expected (from 7 to 26 March) and, Exceptionally, far Away from Brussels, in Bulgaria (Varna) too..., (between the Presidents of EU Commission and Council, Juncker and Tusk, with Bulgarian Prime Minister Borissov, current EU Chairman-in-office, due to meet Turkish President Erdogan).  Meanhwile, the 27 EU Member States' Leaders will be holding a normal Summit in Brussels, on Mars 22-23, focused on Europe's foreseable Future, where Financial and other aspects of EU Enlargement process could be reviewed.  

-------------------------

+ Previously, the PanEuropean Organisation for Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law, the CoE, is holding Important Meetings of its Parliamentary Assembly's Political and Standing Committees (the latter being Equivalent to a Plenary), in the Middle of March in Paris, France, where its New Rapporteur on Syria, former Foreign Minister, Dora Bakoganni, (which has Recently issued a Critical Statement on Turkey's Military Attack in the Syrian Kurdish Region of Afrin : See http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/coerapporteurslamsturkishinvasionofsyriankurds.html), is due to actively participate. By a coincidence, Bakogianni had already Voiced CoE's 1st Succesfull Call to Save assieged Kobane City from ISIS' Deadly Islamist Terrorists cowardly Targetting even innocent Civilians, back on 2014 (See: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/coeforimmediateinternationalhelptosyriankurds.html, etc).