General Affairs and External Relations Council

HC Deb 17 September 2004 vol 424 cc1829-31W

Mr. Hood

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the outcome was of the General Affairs and External Relations Council held on 13 September; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement. [189216]

Mr. MacShane

The answer is as follows:

Outcome of the 13 September 2004 General Affairs and External Relations Council

My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, John Grant (UK's Permanent Representative to the EU) and I represented the UK at the General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) in Brussels on 13 September.

Conclusions were agreed on Sudan/Darfur, Great Lakes Region, ASEM, Iraq and Belarus.

General Affairs Session

EU Financial Framework For 2007–2013

The Council held a policy debate on the proposed EU financial framework for the 2007–13 period, endorsing the methodology proposed by the Presidency for work on the dossier until the end of the year with the aim of enabling agreement to be reached during 2005.

The Council also took a number of decisions without debate, such as the conclusions on progress in planning operation ALTHEA in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and a list of the 24 persons it intends to appoint as Members of the Commission for the 2009 period.

External Relations Session

Sudan/Darfur

The Council remained concerned about the situation in Darfur. It expressed readiness to support the African Union (AU) mission in the region and to contribute to an expanded mission. It also agreed that the EU will take appropriate measures, including sanctions, against the Government of Sudan and all other parties if no tangible progress is achieved in meeting the Council's and the UN Security Council's demands. Conclusions were agreed.

Great Lakes Region

The Council expressed concern over the recent increase in tension in the region and urged the leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi as well as neighbouring countries, in particular Rwanda and Uganda, to continue implementation of their respective peace accords. The Council reaffirmed its conviction that the resolution of conflicts in the Great Lakes Region requires a regional approach. The Council also supported a more focused and robust mandate of MONUC (United Nations Mission in the DRC). Conclusions were agreed.

ASEM

The Council reviewed the issue of ASEM (Asia-Europe meeting) enlargement from the perspective of the upcoming ASEM Summit in Hanoi (8 October) and underlined the importance it attached to EU-Asia relations. It decided that, in the absence of progress in Burma by the time of the Summit, it would tighten restrictive measures against the regime and increase support to the Burmese people. Conclusions were agreed.

Iran

Ministers discussed the Iranian nuclear issue over lunch. They confirmed their full support for the efforts undertaken by France, Germany and the UK and reiterated their request to Iran to comply with suspension commitments. Ministers also discussed human rights in Iran.

Iraq

The Council expressed its strong condemnation of the continued kidnappings and acts of terrorism in Iraq and called for all hostages to be immediately released unharmed. Endorsing the preliminary findings of an EU exploratory mission in Iraq concerning possible EU activities in the field of civilian crisis management, it asked for these findings to be further examined and elaborated with a view to assistance proposals being prepared in good time for the 5 November European Council. Conclusions were agreed.

Belarus

The Council discussed its concerns over the proposed presidential referendum, which is to be held in parallel with the parliamentary elections on 17 October 2004. This change to the constitution will allow the president to run without limitation in future presidential elections. The Council stressed the need to hold such a referendum in accordance with OSCE and Council of Europe standards and norms. It underlined the need for a fair and constructive dialogue with the opposition before any referendum on changing the constitution could be conducted. Furthermore, there should be an improvement in the freedom of access to the media for all political groupings.

The Council once again reiterated its hope that Belarus will take its rightful place among European democratic countries. Conclusions were agreed.

AOB—Western Balkans

The Hungarian delegation raised the question of violent incidents in Vojvodina (Serbia). The Presidency asked EU Heads of Mission and the EU Monitoring Mission to report on these developments.

AOB—Libya

The Italian delegation asked for a possible derogation to the arms embargo against Libya to allow for cooperation in the field of illegal immigration to be taken up in the Council bodies.