RESOLUTION A3-0122/92

Resolution Alexander LANGER

on the conversion to civil uses of the military missile base at Comiso (Sicily)

Text adopted on 10.4.92

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the motion for a resolution by Mr Lo Giudice on civil uses for the Comiso missile base (B3-0621/90),

- having regard to its resolutions of 14 March 1989 on European arms exports, 13 July 1990 on disarmament, the conversion of defence industries and arms exports and 18 April 1991 on the arms trade,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Security (A3-0122/92),

A. whereas in the final decade of the Cold War between the two blocs in East and West, and in view of the siting of SS-20 missiles on European territory by the USSR in 1977, NATO took its so-called 'twin-track' decision, in December 1979, to deploy a number of medium-range missiles (INF, Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces) in Europe and to begin negotiations aimed at reducing the number of missiles in Europe,

B. whereas agreement was reached within NATO that certain allied states would accept, on their territory, a number of Pershing II and Cruise missiles and that decision was gradually acted on,

C. whereas the decision to establish a missile base of the US Air Force's 487th Tactical Missile Wing at Comiso in Sicily (Italy) was originally taken and acted on by the Italian Government against that background, Parliament being given the express assurance that the actual objective was to abandon the weapons systems concerned as soon as the political military conditions laid down in NATO's 'twin-track' decision had been met,

D. whereas the missile base concerned was sited at Vincenzo Magliocco Airport at Comiso, involving the deployment of 108 Cruise missiles (GLCM, Ground-Launched Cruise Missiles),

E. whereas the historic agreement concluded in Washington on 8 December 1987 between Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev cleared the way for a substantial reduction in missiles in Europe and, on the basis of that agreement, provision was made for the dismantling of Cruise missiles at Comiso too,

F. whereas the Bush Administration decided in January 1990 to close a number of US bases abroad, including that at Comiso, and in March 1991, two months ahead of schedule, the last nuclear-warhead missiles still deployed in Europe were withdrawn from Comiso in order to be shipped back to the United States and destroyed,

G. whereas Sicily contains a large number of military facilities and installations; whereas, apart from Comiso, there are a further seven operational US and NATO bases; whereas there is a high risk of accidents and many are recorded each year in connection with that presence (air crashes, collisions between ships, near-misses involving aircraft and ships, fatal accidents, etc.),

H. whereas not only have the various regional and local authorities (region of Sicily, province of Ragusa, and the Vittoria and Comiso local authorities) have voiced clear support for converting the former missile base at Comiso to civil uses, but the Italian Government has given an express undertaking to that effect to the Italian Parliament,

I. having been informed that various questions, draft laws and motions for resolutions seeking to secure the conversion to civil use that is being called for and to secure the best way of identifying the most appropriate civilian role for the former missile base at Comiso have been tabled in the Italian Parliament and in the Sicilian Regional Assembly,

J. having been informed that various civil uses for the former missile base at Comiso have been proposed and are being debated in various forums and authorities, ranging from the setting up of international centres for the study of and research into peace, disarmament, civil rights and friendship between the Mediterranean peoples, the setting up of a civil airport, a research and, possibly, operations centre, in connection with civil protection in the event of natural disasters, a centre for the study of and research into the peaceful application of advanced technology or for research into clean energies, and a 'Mediterranean Polytechnic Institute' to outright commercial uses (storage and marketing of fruit and vegetable products),

K. aware that the process of disarmament and of conversion to civil uses of what have until now been military structures - a sought-after process now possible - is giving rise to new problems, relating to employment and to alternative uses for sites and facilities in many countries of the Community (and outside it),

L. firmly convinced that the national, regional and local authorities affected by this problem must tackle it resolutely and as a priority, and that they must be able to rely on the support of the European Community, in particular under the programmes, relating to the regional development funds and to the funds specifically earmarked for the conversion of military facilities and structures to civil use, which have been, or are to be, set up,

M. firmly convinced that the conversion to civil uses of structures which had previously been used for military purposes is a pan-European problem which requires increasing cooperation between Western and Eastern Europe,

N. having been informed that as part of the PERIFRA programme (Peripheral Regions and Destabilized Activities) aid has been granted in 25 instances (involving a financial commitment of ECU 21 m in 1991) for the conversion of military bases in Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium and for arms industry conversion in the United Kingdom, France and Portugal,

O. whereas, furthermore, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), which is intended to reduce the disparities in terms of development and wealth between the regions of the Community and which already covers the regions of southern Italy, may also profitably serve to provide backing for programmes to convert military activities and facilities to a civil role as part of a process of economic revival and recovery in the regions concerned,

1. Welcomes the fact that the last nuclear-warhead missiles have now been removed from the base at Comiso in Sicily;

2. Supports the call by the regional and local authorities concerned for the former missile base to be converted to civil uses, thus easing what is already a considerable burden on Sicily resulting from the many military facilities and structures;

3. Believes that the geographical location, history, cultural tradition and indeed recent past of the area in which the former Comiso missile base is situated may make it suitable to play its part for peace in Europe and the Mediterranean, with considerable symbolic value and an efficiently functioning infrastructure;

4. Realizes that such a choice falls first and foremost to the public that is directly affected and to the democratic institutions most directly representative of them;

5. Voices its own willingness to help to promote, in the most appropriate ways, the search for the best possible civil use for the former base and asserts that Europe has a considerable interest in the international role which the Comiso location could take on in the context of efforts to secure disarmament, dialogue between the Mediterranean peoples and cultures and lasting peace in the Mediterranean;

6. Believes that the Community must now tackle the problem of converting military facilities and infrastructure to civil uses on the basis of a systematic policy of carrying out appropriate research and providing adequate resources under its structural and regional funds, with an appropriate increase in the volume of funding available for this purpose;

7. Calls on the Commission to carry out as soon as possible, and in collaboration with the national and regional authorities concerned, a study and assessment of the resources required for this purpose and to submit it to Parliament so that it can quantify requirements and select priorities;

8. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, Commission, Parliament and the Government of the Italian Republic, and to the Sicilian Regional Assembly and Council.