Thursday, 26 November 2009
European Parliament adopted on Thursday a resolution on the European Commission's 2009 enlargement strategy for the Western Balkan countries, Iceland and Turkey, drafted by Gabriele Albertini, chairman of the committee on foreign affairs.
The resolution was debated in plenary on Wednesday afternoon and it was put to a plenary vote on Thursday.
An expression in the resolution calling on only the Turkish government to "contribute actively to the swift devising of a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus question" was amended. Instead, it urged all parties to contribute to settlement within the framework of UN decisions.
MEPs welcomed the increasingly open public debate in Turkey about previous taboos while the resolution highlights the importance of a swiftly implementing judicial reform to improve the functioning of the Turkish state and society.
The resolution notes that Turkey has made some progress towards meeting the Copenhagen political criteria but urges the Turkish government and all parliamentary parties to establish consensus on key reforms.
The resolution says MEPs regret the "limited progress made in the area of freedom of religion" and freedom of expression, following the fine imposed on a media group.
It also welcomes government's efforts to resolve the Kurdish issue and says the European Parliament encourages the Turkish government to take concrete measures to address the situation of citizens of Kurdish origin.
MEPs welcomed Turkey's signing of the Nabucco gas pipeline agreement and called for the opening of the energy chapter blocked by the Greek Cypriot administration in the accession negotiations. Diplomatic efforts made to normalize relations with Armenia were underlined. The Turkish Parliament, as well as the Parliament of Armenia, should ratify the relevant protocols, said the resolution.
Calling on the Turkish government to coordinate its foreign policy with the EU, in particular regarding Iran; the resolution asserts, however, that the NATO-EU strategic cooperation continues to be blocked by Turkey's objections, which it claimed to have negative consequences for the protection of the EU personnel deployed, and urges Turkey to set aside those objections as soon as possible.
