A3-0408/93

Resolution on relations between the Union and the Council of Europe

The European Parliament,

-having regard to the motion for a resolution tabled by Mr Arbeloa Muru on relations with the Council of Europe (B3-1074/92),

-having regard to its resolution of 20 January 1993 on the structure and strategy for the European Union with regard to its enlargement and the creation of a Europe-wide order,

-having regard to the Declaration of Vienna adopted at the end of the first Summit between the Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the Council of Europe which the Community attended,

-having regard to Rule 45 of its Rules of Procedure,

-having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Security (A3-0408/93),

A.having regard to the pan-European dimension assumed by the Council of Europe following the collapse of the totalitarian regimes of Central and Eastern Europe,

B.aware of the contribution this organization can make to reinforcing and promoting the process of democratization and reform currently under way in these countries,

C.convinced of the desirability of strengthening the role of the Council of Europe, the principal European organization in which the Union and its Member States are able to participate and/or develop multilateral cooperation with the countries intending to apply for membership of the Union in the medium term,

D.having regard to the important contribution made by the Council of Europe to the construction of Europe, notably through cooperation in the intergovernmental sector, and having regard also to the quantity and quality of conventions and treaties drawn up under the aegis of this organization which allow cooperation between the states of Europe in a whole range of different areas such as judicial affairs, the strengthening of democratic institutions, social protection, culture and education and the environment,

E.having regard to the widely-regarded system for protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms established by the Rome Convention - which is principally the work of the European Court and Commission of Human Rights - a system to which the Treaty on European Union also refers,

F.having regard to the fact that with the entry into force of this Treaty, the Union's activities will fall into three categories - Community activities, common foreign and security policy and cooperation in the fields of justice and home affairs - and that the Member States have been involved for a number of years in the Council of Europe's activities in these three areas,

G.taking the view that present procedures governing cooperation between the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and between the Commission and the General Secretariat of the Council of Europe are unsatisfactory since they no longer meet the requirements of the political situation in Europe today,

H.having regard to the fact that a new basis must be established for relations between the European Union and the Council of Europe,

I.whereas the time has come to consider possible Community accession to the Council of Europe Statute, which would help to strengthen the equilibrium in Europe,

1.Welcomes the fact that the Vienna Summit took place and also the outcome of this Summit which reaffirmed the adherence of the member states of the Council of Europe to the principles of pluralist democracy as a means of establishing an area of "democratic security" in Europe;

2.Reaffirms the unique role of the Council of Europe in building new structures in Europe, particularly as regards the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, the promotion of Europe's cultural identity and the development and strengthening of democracy in the Countries of Eastern and Central Europe;

3.Approves the decisions taken at Vienna to improve the effectiveness of the European Convention on Human Rights and to establish a legal instrument to protect ethnic minorities and the action plan against racism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and intolerance;

4.Recalls and supports the resolutions adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe which concern human rights, equality between women and men in democratic life, the basic rights of women and family matters;

5.Considers that, pending further developments in relations with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, it is in the interests of the Union to promote the activities of the Council of Europe which can serve as a basis for cooperation with the countries of Eastern and Central Europe in certain areas within its remit;

6.Desires that the Council of Europe should have at its disposal sufficient budgetary resources to enable it to strengthen and further develop its activities so as to contribute to reinforcing stability in Europe;

7.Calls on the Commission, in order to meet the need for complementarity and a better use of resources, further to develop joint actions in favour of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe mostly through:

-increased cooperation between the PHARE and TACIS programmes and the new Council of Europe programmes Demosthène, Thémis and Lode;

-increased coordination to help set up democratic institutions between the G24 and the Council of Europe;

-greater resources and cooperation in respect of the East-West/North-South dialogue which is already taking place at the Council of Europe's Lisbon Centre, on whose bodies Parliament and the Commission are represented; such action could be strengthened by the immediate accession of all the Union Member States to the Centre;

8.Considers that the Member States should further coordinate their activities in the Council of Europe, both as regards the adoption of positions by the Committee of Ministers and participation in work in the intergovernmental sector;

9.Is convinced of the desirability of forging closer ties with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and of increasing the exchange and accessibility of working documents and committee reports of the two institutions, so as to promote coordination and exchanges of opinion on subjects of mutual interest; proposes that meetings between the bureaux of equivalent committees in both organizations should be established on an institutional basis;

10.Instructs its committee responsible to revise the wording of Rule 154 of Parliament's Rules of Procedure so that it is more in keeping with the present state of relations between the Union and the Council of Europe;

11.Recalls that the public tends to confuse the Council of Europe and the European Union; calls on all the institutions concerned to organize an information campaign to make the peoples of Europe more aware of the objectives and content of the work of these two organizations and believes in this context that information leaflets on the Council of Europe should also be available at the documentation centres of the Commission and European Parliament and vice versa;

12.Considers it both desirable and necessary that the Community should adhere to the European Convention on Human Rights so as to ensure that the rights of Community citizens are better protected, a vital aspect in the building of European unity;

13.Considers that there must be greater participation of the bodies of the Union in the work of the Council of Europe and calls on the Commission to put forward proposals to this end so that the Community accedes to the Statute of the Council of Europe and, by its presence, guarantees and reinforces the new equilibrium in Europe;

14.Considers it advisable in the meantime that the Union should be permanently represented in the Council of Europe and its bodies, as it is in the United Nations, specialized institutions (FAO, UNESCO) and other organizations (e.g. the OECD), and calls on the Commission to establish a delegation in this organization;

15.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the governments of the Member States, the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe and the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.