Plenary sitting
15.1.2016
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
to wind up the debate on the statement by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
pursuant to Rule 123(2) of the Rules of Procedure
the implementation of the Association Agreements / Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreements with Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine
( 2015/3032(RSP) )
Petras Auštrevičius, Javier Nart, Marietje Schaake, Johannes Cornelis van Baalen, Dita Charanzová, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Louis Michel, Norica Nicolai, Urmas Paet, Jozo Radoš, Pavel Telička, Ivo Vajgl
on behalf of the ALDE Group
European Parliament resolution on the implementation of the Association Agreements / Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreements with Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine
( 2015/3032(RSP) )
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the Association Agreements of 27 June 2014 between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States, of the one part, and Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, of the other part, together with the accompanying Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreements,
– having regard to the ratification of these agreements by the European Parliament in September (Ukraine), November (Moldova) and December 2014 (Georgia), and to the accompanying resolutions adopted then by the European Parliament,
– having regard to its report on the review of the European Neighbourhood Policy, adopted in June 2015, and to its relevant resolutions concerning the political situation in the three countries,
– having regard to the Association Agendas for 2014-2016 which have succeeded the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) action plan for the three countries,
– having regard to the progress reports on Georgia’s and Ukraine’s implementation of the action plan on visa liberalisation of 18 December 2015,
– having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the Eastern Partnership were set up and designed to promote peace, stability and prosperity in Europe through support for democracy, the rule of law and sustainable economic development; whereas the ENP and the EU’s engagement and partnership with the Eastern Neighbours were never designed to be a geopolitical challenge against any other country;
B. whereas the Association Agreements have now been in force for over one year along with the trade agreements with Georgia and Moldova; whereas the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between Ukraine and the EU came fully into force on 1 January 2016; whereas the creation of Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas (DCFTA) between the EU and Georgia, the EU and Moldova and the EU and Ukraine represents one of the most significant mutual benefits of the agreements, as the importance of trade for growth, job creation, prosperity and stability is indisputable;
C. whereas visa-free travel was introduced between EU and Moldova in April 2014, and whereas the latest reports by the Commission in December 2015 indicate that Georgia and Ukraine now meet the requirements set in the visa liberalisation action plans;
D. whereas the EU’s engagement with the Eastern partners has been met with resistance from the Russian Federation, which seems to regard the EU’s outreach only in terms of geopolitical competition, in a zero-sum context;
E. whereas Russia remains involved, directly or indirectly, in conflicts and internal divisions touching all the three association countries – the Abkhazia and South Ossetia conflicts in Georgia, the Transnistria issue in Moldova and the Russian annexation of Crimea and involvement in the conflict in the eastern parts of Ukraine; whereas these conflicts undermine the territorial integrity of the partner countries, are in breach of international law and weaken the overall security situation in the continent of Europe;
F. whereas the European Union and its Member States have adopted a series of sanctions and restrictive measures against the Russian Federation and Russian officials, notably as a consequence of the Russian annexation of Crimea and Russia’s direct involvement in the conflict in the eastern part of Ukraine;
G. whereas the association countries are making measurable progress in many fields while at the same time facing internal political pressure from political, social and economic reforms and from a still developing democratic culture, as well as external pressure;
H. whereas democratic institutions are still weak in the three association countries; whereas the presence of economic interests in some of the political parties, and hence in the governments and the designation of their cabinets, decisively affects the democratic configuration of the countries;
I. whereas the conclusion of the Association Agreements is not an end in and of itself, but part of a broader process to seek closer cooperation with the association countries closer to the EU, in terms of legal, economic, political and social reforms and convergence; whereas, to this end, implementation is essential; whereas this process is based on the common values of the European Union and the associate countries, which are all members of the Council of Europe;
1. Welcomes the progress achieved in the implementation of the Association Agreements and the positive impact the Free Trade Agreements have had in terms of increased trade and business contacts, reform incentives and contributing to economic growth, and reiterates the readiness of the EU to make further efforts in order to sustain the positive results of reforms undertaken, to monitor closely the impact of the Free Trade Agreements and to minimise any possible negative impact of the new free trade regime in place;
2. Underlines the fact that the association countries have freely chosen contractual engagement with the European Union and that their choice must be fully respected; reiterates that the ENP and the Eastern Partnership are not a geopolitical challenge against any third party, but a long-term policy in favour of stability, prosperity and democracy in the continent of Europe based on respect for human rights, good governance, the rule of law, and a market economy;
3. Stresses that the Council of the European Union unanimously signed the Association Agreements;
4. Welcomes the positive evaluation by the Commission as regards visa liberalisation for Ukraine and Georgia in the latest assessment of the implementation of the visa liberalisation action plans with the two countries; expects the Council and the Member States to proceed to grant the two countries a visa-free travel regime without undue delay;
5. Takes note of the decision of 21 December 2015 by the Council to extend the economic sanctions against Russia, as the Minsk agreement has not yet been fully implemented; underlines that full implementation of the Minsk agreement remains central to the stabilisation of the eastern part of Ukraine and that EU sanctions will remain in place until Russia has delivered on its part of the agreement; recalls that sanctions are not a goal in themselves, and expresses the hope that the Russian Federation will soon respect international law, whereupon the EU will be able to lift its sanctions;
6. Emphasises that the conflicts in the Eastern Neighbourhood need further political attention from the European Union and from all the multilateral security organisations in Europe, in particular the OSCE and the German OSCE Presidency; calls on the EEAS, the Council and the Member States to take a more proactive stance and to use all the diplomatic and political mechanisms set up to deal with these conflicts; points out that if a specific diplomatic resolution mechanism fails to deliver any results despite years of efforts, new formats should be envisaged; recalls that the EU can act most strongly on the global stage when it is united;
7. Calls on the Commission and the EEAS to develop, together with the association countries, confidence-building measures which could ease tension over separation lines and alleviate the suffering of people in these conflicts; in this context, stresses the importance of the continuous work done by the EU CSDP missions – the European Union Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) to Moldova and Ukraine and the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia;
8. Reiterates its support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all the countries in the Eastern Neighbourhood, including for the three association countries, and underlines that the agreements, including the free trade provisions, should be implemented in a way which facilitates the resolution of territorial conflicts;
9. Stresses that by approximating EU legislation in areas such as competition, government procurement, and protection of intellectual property rights, the DCFTA will contribute to the modernisation and diversification of these economies, and thus provide an impetus for reform and the fight against corruption; improvements in the area of food safety will enable the countries to become eligible to export animal-origin products to the EU; notes that the approximation of sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS) and technical regulations and standards to EU requirements should lead to positive growth effects in agriculture and the food processing sector;
10. Underlines the need for the judiciary to be absolutely independent in Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova;
11. Underlines also the need for real freedom of the press; expresses its concern regarding all the cases in which freedom of expression and the press are at stake;
12. Believes that parliamentary scrutiny is a fundamental condition for democratic support for EU policies; calls on the Commission, therefore, to facilitate regular and detailed monitoring of the implementation of the DCFTA by the European Parliament in a timely manner; calls on the Commission to monitor closely the implementation of the DCFTAs in order to prevent social and environmental dumping, especially during the transition period for some sectors; stresses the importance of parliamentary diplomacy and points, in this connection, to the clear need for reform of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly;
13. Encourages the three association countries to make further efforts in the following areas:
as regards Georgia:
i. notes the change of Prime Minister in Georgia in December 2015 and welcomes the statements in favour of cooperation with the parliamentary opposition as a way to ease the tense political polarisation in the country; considers, however, that business and politics should not be interlinked when ruling a democratic country;
ii. welcomes recent reforms by the Georgian authorities to further strengthen the stability, independence and effectiveness of state institutions, in particular the judicial institutions, and the efforts to consolidate the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms; considers, nevertheless, that these reforms are insufficient in scope and fall short of addressing the challenges facing the judicial institutions, particularly the issue of independence and institutional integrity against undue political influence; more specifically, calls for the establishment of transparent, merit-based selection of judges and for a change in the 3-year term of probation system for judges;
iii. stresses that prosecutions must be transparent, evidence-based, proportionate and free from political motivation, and should adhere strictly to investigatory procedures and due process and be conducted in full respect of the principles of a fair trial, as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights; remains concerned about the lack of accountability of the Prosecutor’s Office and the blurred criteria according to which prosecutors and investigators are appointed; calls for continued efforts for full independence, efficiency, impartiality and professionalism in the judiciary, the Prosecutor’s Office and the Ministry of the Interior, as well as in the newly established Security Service, and asks for the promotion of political will to create the mechanisms for their accountability;
iv. welcomes the changes in the Labour Code in Georgia; stresses, however, that health and safety legislation regarding labour rights must still be at the top of the agenda;
v. reiterates its concern over the fate of the children placed in residential religious institutions without state oversight, stresses the responsibility of the government under international human rights law to protect all children from violence, and calls for measures to ensure effective investigation and rehabilitation for children affected by ill-treatment and/or sexual abuse;
vi. calls for a clear, transparent and human-rights-based policy, and mechanisms for investigating, prosecuting and compensating human rights violations, and for it to be ensured that this process fully respects the principle of the rule of law and due process;
vii. stresses the need for an improved political culture and a climate of national reconciliation; considers that the detentions and imprisonment of officials who served under previous governments and members of the current opposition could be seen as signs of selective justice; expresses concern about the potential use of the judicial system to fight against political opponents, which could undermine Georgia’s European course and the efforts of the Georgian authorities in the area of democratic reform; calls on all political forces to avoid this type of instrumentalisation, while pursuing a serious fight to rule out corruption and misuse of public office;
viii. calls on the Georgian Government, especially in view of the 2016 parliamentary elections, to create a favourable environment for free media which promotes freedom of expression and media pluralism, and to allow the media to report independently and objectively without political or economic pressure; expresses its concern over the recent attempts to change the ownership and editorial policy of Georgia’s most popular independent TV channel, Rustavi 2, and as well as over freedom of media in the country; calls, in this regard, for full implementation of the law on transparency of media ownership, and reiterates that any court ruling should not undermine the independence of the media’s editorial policy;
ix. calls on the Georgian Government to initiate a reform of electoral law in order to ensure better proportional and pluralistic representation, in line with international and European requirements and the ruling of the Georgian Constitutional Court;
x. condemns efforts to erect memorials and statutes of Joseph Stalin, and calls on the Georgian authorities to distance themselves from such activities and to show due respect for the memory of millions of victims of Stalinism;
xi. stresses that, according to the Georgian Statistical Office (Geostat), the first 12 months of DCFTA implementation indicate an increase in EU imports from Georgia of 15 %, whereas EU exports to Georgia declined slightly, by 6.2 %; calls for accession of Georgia to the Energy Community Treaty in order to ensure full compliance with Chapter 11 of the DCFTA;
xii. stresses the need to accelerate the implementation of food safety regulations on the ground and improve inter-agency cooperation in Georgia in order to deliver the desired DCFTA results;
xiii. calls on the Georgian Government to ensure that civil society is properly involved in the reform processes;
as regards Moldova:
i. regrets that the Parliament of Moldova and the political parties represented therein have not yet succeeded in forming a new government since the vote of no confidence on 29 October 2015 led to the resignation of the government of Prime Minister Valeriu Streleț; considers that the current political impasse in Moldova has reached a critical point that risks destabilising the country’s institutions and endangering the economy, the political legitimacy of all the political parties and the fight against corruption, which has a heavy impact on the inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI);
ii. calls on all the political parties of Moldova to engage seriously in negotiations to find a majority to form a government that can proceed with the implementation of the necessary reforms, in particular a stabilisation of the economy in compliance with the demands of the World Bank and the IMF to ensure investments and public procurement;
iii. emphasises that Moldindconbank, Moldova Agroindbank and Victoria Bank should be undergoing diagnostic audits, and that any problems revealed should be dealt with immediately; notes that the supervision of the banking sector remains insufficient; emphasises that it is businesses that bear the cost of the financial crisis through more difficult access to loans;
iv. stresses that after one year of DCFTA implementation, Moldova’s total exports decreased by 14.8 %, whereas, however, trade with the EU was the most stable, with exports down by only 1.4 %, while exports to CIS and other partners decreased more significantly; points in particular to the case of agri-food goods, for which expectations were high and where many opponents claimed that Moldova was not competitive, but the change in exports to the EU was positive, with an increase of 10.8 %;
v. notes, on services, that fundamental weaknesses remain in the internal legislation regarding basic definitions for establishment and movement of professionals and the insurance sector, exposing Moldova to similar risks as those that led to the global banking crisis;
as regards Ukraine:
i. regrets that the Minsk agreement has not been fully implemented, and encourages the Ukrainian authorities, as well as the Russian authorities, to put all their efforts into a full and complete implementation of their obligations under this agreement; welcomes the work on the legislative reforms needed to meet the requirements of the Minsk agreement, on the work to fulfil the visa liberalisation action plan and to comply with the Association Action Plan, and underlines that these reforms, when fully implemented, will fundamentally change Ukrainian society and improve conditions for Ukrainian citizens;
ii. calls on the Member States to keep the OSCE mission fully manned and fully operational; notes the calls by the Ukrainian Government for an extended international peace-keeping force along the Ukraine-Russian border and in the Luhansk and Donetsk districts; agrees that, once the situation permits and as part of the full implementation of the Minsk agreement, an EU-led CSDP mission should be offered for deployment to the parties in the conflict, to assist in tasks such as demining, assisting in preparations for local elections and securing free access for humanitarian aid organisations;
iii. reiterates the call for continued particular attention to judicial reform and the fight against corruption, as a critical point for restoring full trust and legitimacy to the Ukrainian Parliament and Ukrainian political parties;
iv. calls on the Ukrainian authorities, politicians, leaders, political parties and other opinion makers to make further efforts to unite the country, to overcome internal divisions and to put an end to the often polarised political culture in the country; underlines that the political parties must be transformed into fully democratic and grass-roots-based organisations and not depend on oligarchs for funding and influence; stresses the need for strict implementation of the law on party financing;
v. welcomes the entry into force of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement on 1 January 2016 and regrets the decision of the Russian Federation to restrict trade with Ukraine, in violation of WTO and bilateral commitments; recalls that the Commission has been engaged in technical talks with Ukraine and Russia on the consequences of the Free Trade Agreement, which is the first time that the EU has ever entered into talks with a third country regarding a bilateral agreement; hopes that these talks can continue and bring concrete results; calls on the Russian Federation, therefore, to refrain from further trade restrictions, and for a more constructive engagement with both the EU and Ukraine;
vi. notes that Ukraine has experienced a reduction in its total exports in the first half of 2015, whereas a change in the regional structure of exports has meant that the share of exports going to the EU has remained stable at around 30 % of total exports;
vii. urges Ukraine to align its legislation with that of the EU in the areas of company law, corporate governance, accounting and auditing and to remove its export restriction measures on wood, which violate article 35 of the Association Agreement and WTO rules;
viii. welcomes Ukraine’s decision to remove its safeguard measures on passenger cars in line with the WTO ruling of 20 July 2015 and acknowledges the removal of a special erga omnes duty surcharge on grounds of balance-of-payment imbalances which Ukraine introduced at the end of 2014;
14. Calls for a swift completion of the energy reform initiated in 2015; notes that from 1 April 2016, all energy prices should be unified to avoid further privileged arbitrage for certain insiders, and a real market for gas and electricity should be introduced and supervised by a truly independent regulator;
15. Stresses the need to promote free media and freedom of expression as a basic foundation, while also stepping up efforts to counter disinformation and improve the strategic communication of EU policies and activities in the Eastern Neighbourhood, including for the three association countries, together with the activities undertaken by the EU East StratCom Task Force, a newly established structure within the EEAS;
16. Notes that, under Article 49 TEU, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine – like any other European country – may apply to become members of the Union, provided that they adhere to the principles of democracy, respect fundamental freedoms and human and minority rights, and ensure the rule of law;
17. Reiterates its call for a renewal of the European Neighbourhood Policy, based on a clear and ambitious political vision and the need to speak with one political voice; reiterates its call for EU Special Representatives to be appointed for the East and for the South, with the task of politically coordinating a revised policy;
18. Calls on its President to forward this resolution to the Presidents, Parliaments and Governments of Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, and to the Council, the Commission, the EEAS and the Council of Europe.