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The President of the European Parliament
COMMUNIQUES DE PRESSE

Press Release : Brussels, 15 December 2001

Nicole Fontaine: 'A Convention which points the way towards the future of the Union'
 

The President of the European Parliament welcomed the agreement reached in Laeken between the Fifteen in the following terms: 'as we had urged it to do, the European Council has drawn the conclusions from the failure of the strictly intergovernmental method for the revision of the Treaties. The work of drafting the Treaty of Nice demonstrated that, with a view to achieving a result which secures the support of our fellow citizens and enables the institutions to operate effectively, it is essential to establish dialogue with civil society and give national and European parliamentarians an active role in the Treaty revision process. On these grounds, I welcome the establishment of the Convention.

Beforehand, we had said that no subject should be taboo and the European Council seems to have understood this by setting no restrictions on the Convention's remit. The many questions raised in the Laeken Declaration reflect Parliament's concerns. I have every confidence that the members of the Convention and its Praesidium will be able to answer those questions and clear the way for a constitutional process entirely consistent with the Community method. We wanted to give fresh impetus to the European debate, and I am delighted that the Fifteen have taken up this challenge. The commitment to the European ideal which Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, whose appointment to the chairmanship of the Convention I applaud, and Jean-Luc Dehaene and Giuliano Amato, the vice-chairmen, have always demonstrated leaves me in no doubt that the Convention will indeed lend new momentum to the debate and the EU's working methods. The Convention will outline the future shape of the European Union.

In Laeken the Fifteen reiterated their commitment to work together in Afghanistan. With a view to raising their profile on the international stage, it was very important that they should demonstrate their will to be represented, jointly, in the international security force. The priority they attach to humanitarian aid and reconstruction attests to their determination to support the Afghan people, who must not be forgotten in the post-Taliban era.

Against a background of terrible, escalating violence, the position adopted by the European Council on the Middle East seems to me to be balanced and resolute and clear in its delineation of the responsibilities borne by each of the parties. I am pleased that, in line with the call I made in my address to the Summit, the European Council emphasised the need to establish an impartial monitoring mechanism, in the interests of both parties.

As the enlargement draws closer, the standpoint taken up by the European Council on the new accessions confirms the irreversibility of the process. I welcome the fact that the Fifteen also sent a message of encouragement to Bulgaria and Romania'.

For more information, please contact: Jacques NANCY, + 32/476 96 96 72


 
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