EU ARMENIA PARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION COMMITTEE

Transcription

1 EU ARMENIA PARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION COMMITTEE FOURTH MEETING 9 10 September 2002 Yerevan DECLARATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 18 September 2002 EUR/TB/ES DV/477627EN.doc 1

2 EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee FOURTH MEETING 9 10 September 2002 Yerevan Final Statement and Recommendations pursuant to Article 89 of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement Under the co-chairmanship of Mrs Ursula SCHLEICHER (EPP-ED, Germany) and Mr Hovhannes HOVHANNISYAN the fourth meeting of the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee was held in Yerevan on 9-10 September The Committee exchanged views with Mr Armen KHACHATRYAN, Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr V. OSKANIAN, Minister of Foreign Affairs, on behalf of the Armenian Government, H.E. Mr Antonios VLAVIANOS, Ambassador of Greece in Armenia, on behalf of the Danish Presidency-in-Office of the Council of the European Union, H.E. Mr Torben HOLTZE, Head of the European Commission Delegation to Armenia, on behalf of the European Commission. The following issues were discussed during the meeting: Economic and social situation in Armenia Democratisation, Human Rights and Judicial Reform in Armenia Environmental issues Situation with regard to Nagorno Karabakh Relations with neighbouring countries Enlargement and the constitutional development of the EU The Parliamentary Cooperation Committee: General 1. congratulates Armenia on the success of its celebrations that took place in 2001 to commemorate the 1700 th anniversary of the adoption of Christianity in the country; 2. reiterates its position that Armenia has a strong European vocation and that it shares common values and destiny with the other peoples of Europe; recognises the repeated expression of the strong wish of the Armenian people to be more deeply integrated into Europe; Economic and social situation 3. urges the Armenian authorities to adopt as soon as possible the National Programme on approximation of existing legislation with European legislation; DV/477627EN.doc 2

3 4. reiterates its statements that improvements such as greater transparency and the removal of unnecessary monopolistic barriers as well as administrative barriers, the consistent assurance of free competition conditions in the business environment, consistent promotion of small and medium business, will attract more investment; stresses the need to implement existing legislation in order to promote normal business activities; 5. repeats its call for improvements in the procedures for tax administration and tax collection, underlining the need to stop the practice of advance tax collection in particular; also stresses the need for revision of the taxation system and for improvement of customs procedures; 6. underlines the role and the expertise of the Tacis funded AEPLAC (Armenia-EU Policy and Legal Advice Centre) in assisting the Armenian authorities in carrying out the necessary reforms so as to contribute to accelerated PCA implementation; 7. looks forward to Armenia joining the WTO and urges the authorities to take steps to diversify the country's export potential; 8. supports the continuation of the privatisation process; 9. praises the support given by the Armenian authorities to the development of the IT sector in the country and applauds the success of the EU supported regional conference on information technologies that was held in Yerevan in April 2002; welcomes the further assistance to be rendered by EU to the development of the IT sector in Armenia, in particular towards the establishment of the IT Centre in Yerevan; Democratisation, Human Rights and Judicial Reform 10. underlines the importance of free and independent media and acknowledges progress made by Armenia to meet Council of Europe commitments in this respect; looks forward to a scheduled tender for the right to broadcast which will enable TV channels, that earlier as a result of competition lost allotments for frequencies, to participate and, if successful, recover their licence. Considers also expedient the establishment of a special radio and TV channel on promoting the progress of the development of democracy, which will cover the activities of the Armenian Parliament; 11. welcomes the moratorium on the death penalty and the results of the first reading of the Draft Criminal Code in the National Assembly of Armenia but urges the Armenian Government to abolish it completely in line with the European Human Rights Convention; 12. welcomes the firm commitment of the Armenian authorities to hold free and fair local elections in 2002 and presidential and parliamentary elections in 2003; 13. welcomes the ratification in April 2002 by Armenia of the Council of Europe Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms; 14. reminds Armenia that it is a signatory of the International Criminal Court Treaty of Rome and consequently urges the Armenian Parliament to ratify the statute of the Court as soon as possible. DV/477627EN.doc 3

4 Environmental issues 15. looks forward to the closure of the nuclear power station at Medzamor as soon as alternative reliable, diversified and secure sources of power can be brought into service; welcomes the commitment of the EU to provide a grant of up to EUR100m, conditional upon agreement on a binding closure date, as a contribution to the implementation of the substitution strategy; supports proposals for a donors' conference to be held in order to match the investment plan with adequate financial resources; The situation with regard to Nagorno Karabakh 16. reiterates its support for all efforts to reach a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh dispute; stresses that international involvement is necessary in efforts to resolve the conflict, although ultimately only the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides can take the decisive steps to reach a peaceful solution to this long-standing problem within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group; 17. stresses again its belief that the stability and prosperity of Armenia and its neighbours depends largely on regional cooperation, an atmosphere of mutual trust, and also on the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh and other conflicts; Relations with neighbouring countries 18. welcomes the rapprochement between both the EU and Russia and the USA and Russia, which it considers can offer the prospect of considerable benefits for the South Caucasus region; 19. welcomes recent steps taken by Armenia and Turkey to intensify dialogue on issues of mutual interest with a view to the establishment of normal relations; reiterates its call on Ankara to reopen its borders with Armenia in line with its commitment as a candidate for EU membership; notes that the European Parliament s position is reflected in its resolutions of 18 June 1987 and 28 February 2002 and urges the creation of a basis for reconciliation; 20. supports any unconditional moves to reopen the Yerevan-Nakhichevan-Baku railway line as a measure that would help to build confidence between Armenia and Azerbaijan; 21. welcomes progress on the Regional Environment Centre as an example of a grassroots project that can bring together the three south Caucasus states; welcomes also progress on the development of the TRACECA route through the recent adoption of the new map, which include Kars-Gumri rail and land roads, at the Tashkent Ministerial meeting in April, 2002 and the INOGATE project as further examples of regional cooperation; European Union 22. stresses the need for the full and effective implementation of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) to be given the highest priority by applying European principles and standards for future association. DV/477627EN.doc 4

5 23. stresses the importance of the Food Security Programme (FSP) and the exceptional financial assistance package; supports also the Poverty Reduction Strategy as a key instrument to root out poverty; 24. welcomes the call in the European Parliament resolution of 28 February 2002 for the European Union to become more engaged in the Caucasus region, which is strategically important for Europe in terms of its common foreign and security policy and as a genuine gateway to Central Asia; 25. supports as well the European Parliament's repeated call for the Council and Commission to prepare a Common Strategy for the countries of the South Caucasus that should be focused on prevention of violent conflicts and the promotion of a framework for security and cooperation; also reiterates its call on Council to appoint a Special Envoy for the region; 26. reiterates its call for the early establishment of a full Delegation of the European Commission in Armenia. Ursula SCHLEICHER Hovhannes HOVHANNISYAN DV/477627EN.doc 5