(Rule 92)

A3-0242/94

Recommendation on the joint action on the Pact on Stability in Europe

The European Parliament,

-having regard to Rule 92 of its Rules of Procedure,

-having regard to Article J.7, second paragraph, of the Treaty on European Union,

-having regard to the Council Decision of 20 December 1993 concerning the joint action adopted by the Council, on the basis of Article J.7 TEU, on the Inaugural Conference on the Stability Pact,

-having regard to the oral question with debate (B3-0009/94 - O-15/94) by Mr Barón Crespo, on behalf of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Security, on implementation of the stability pact in Europe,

-having regard to the Council's answer of 9 March 1994,

-having regard to its resolution of 15 December 1993 on the European Council and questions relating to the CFSP, and in particular paragraphs 5 to 7 thereof,

-having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Security (A3-0242/94),

A.whereas the aim of the Pact on Stability in Europe is to ensure that borders are consolidated and the rights of minorities respected in the first instance in the states of Central and Eastern Europe which are heading towards membership of the European Union in the not too distant future,

B.whereas the Pact is therefore an exercise in preventive diplomacy complementing both the CSCE and the Council of Europe which will help to strengthen the security of the European Union by ensuring stability at the borders of its Member States,

C.whereas the European Union has convened an Inaugural Conference for May 1994 in order to lay down the framework for the action to be taken and initiate round tables geared to specific predetermined issues,

D.whereas, on conclusion of this work, a final conference will seek to enshrine in the Pact on Stability all special agreements concluded during the round tables,

E.whereas the future Pact on Stability will be both geographically open and evolutionary in nature and, ultimately, it will be appropriate for states belonging to regions which play an essential role for Europe's security and stability and hence for the European Union's security, such as all the Balkan states and those in the Caucasus, to be associated with it,

F.thanking the French Government for its initiative, from which the Pact on Stability in Europe as a joint action of the European Union in the area of the CFSP stems,

1.Acknowledges the importance of the Pact on Stability for the security of the European Union and of Europe and supports the joint action adopted in this regard;

2.Recommends to the Council that:

(a)it be involved in appropriate ways, via a three-member delegation, in the Inaugural Conference to be held in Paris on 26 and 27 May 1994,

(b)it be kept regularly informed, if necessary on a confidential basis, of the progress of the round tables,

(c)it be consulted, within the meaning of Article J.7 of the Treaty on European Union, prior to the final conference to ratify all the agreements concluded, which will constitute the Pact on Stability in Europe;

3.Instructs its President to forward this recommendation to the Council and, for information, to the Commission.