7Th High-Level Meeting of the Parliaments of the “5+5 Dialogue” Member States
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7th High-level Meeting of the Parliaments of the “5+5 Dialogue” Member States Algiers, 20 January 2018 Summary The 7th High level Meeting of parliaments of the West Mediterranean "5+5 Dialogue" Member States took place in Algiers, on 20 January 2018, kindly hosted by the two Chambers of the Parliament of Algeria. The conference, organized by the PAM Secretariat, was dedicated to “Western Mediterranean: promoting inclusive, shared and sustainable economic and social development facing common challenges in the region”. The parliamentarians warmly thanked H.E. Mr Abdelkader Bensalah, President of the Council of the Nation, and H.E. Said Bouhadja, President of the National People’s Assembly, for having hosted the event. During the parliamentary meeting, built on a series of round tables, parliamentarians and experts had the opportunity to share ongoing and scheduled activities on key topics such as Regional Security and Stability, Counter Terrorism, Socio-Economic development and Trade Facilitation, Employment, Mass Migrations, Youth, Education and Vocational Training. Delegates unanimously noted that the 5+5 Forum is a privileged platform, both at the level of parliamentary dialogue and intergovernmental cooperation, to better understand and tackle those phenomena of concern to the region Mediterranean. The discussions ended up with a series of recommendations, which were presented to the Foreign Ministers of the 5+5 Dialogue Member States, at their14th Meeting held on 21 January, in Algiers, which PAM attended and contributed to, at the kind invitation of the Algerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Abdelkader Messahel. 1 Report Opening session In his welcoming speech, Sen. Tahar Kellil, Algeria, Vice-President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM), welcomed all parliamentarians and participants to Algiers, on behalf of both the Presidents of the Chambers of the Parliament of Algeria, H.E. Mr Abdelkader Bensalah, President of the Council of the Nation, and H.E. Said Bouhadja, President of the National People’s Assembly. He then referred to Algeria’s conviction that sustainable development contributes to preserving stability and strengthening peace and security at the national, regional and international levels, and to the continuous development process the country is experiencing, despite the fall in oil prices. Underlining the role of parliaments, he recalled the opportunities that parliamentary diplomacy offers to face common challenges in the Euro-Mediterranean area, particularly for bilateral and multiple parliamentary cohesion and synergy. He called for a common, coherent and multidimensional vision to be adopted by the 5+5 Dialogue Member States, in order to face the current challenges the region is facing, namely development, technology transfer, the fulfilment of youth aspirations, and the fight against terrorism, violent extremism, illegal migration and organized crime. He also emphasized the imperative of working for a peaceful resolution of crises and conflicts, avoiding the destructive military option and respecting the national sovereignty of States. He concluded by reiterating the support of the Algerian parliament for all the initiatives and efforts made by the countries of the 5+5 dialogue for sustainable development, security and peace in the Mediterranean area. In his opening speech, the PAM President, Hon. Pedro Roque, Portugal, thanked the Algerian Parliament and Sen. Kellil for hosting the meeting and emphasized the importance of regional dialogue between the countries of the Western Mediterranean, which are close geographically and culturally to each other and are facing common challenges that require cooperation and a common strategy, to achieve effective solutions. He also stressed the need for a closer cooperation among national parliaments to guarantee security, stability and prosperity for the citizens. He then referred to the critical challenges that the Mediterranean region is facing, especially the Syrian crisis, the protracted conflict between Palestine and Israel, the political instability in Libya, mass migrations from the Sahel, global terrorism, the return of Foreign Fighters, high unemployment rates, and adaptation to climate change. In this context, the PAM President stressed that the 5+5 dialogue format facilitates direct dialogue between the North-South on equal terms to deal with these issues, and referred to the importance of the 5+5 Dialogue at all levels, including Heads of State, foreign, defence and education ministers, and among legislators. He reminded parliamentarians of their duty not only to engage in discussion with their colleagues from neighbouring countries, but also to work together at common projects to promote and back effective common legislations in their national parliaments. In this context, he suggested inviting the Coordinator of the Sahel 5 Group, in order to establish a fruitful cooperation and a direct link with the Sahel region, which has become a physical extension of the West Mediterranean and from which large part of migrants come from. Finally, as a representative of Portugal, he informed the participants that he was in contact with the Portuguese Minister of Defence to explore the possibility of hosting a meeting of the parliamentary dimension of the 5+5 Defence and Culture Ministers forum, which Portugal will host in 2018. 2 The PAM Secretary General, Ambassador Sergio Piazzi, opened his statement by thanking the Parliament of Algeria and Sen. Kellil for the generous hospitality. He then recalled the origins of the 5+5 Dialogue that dates back in 1990s, the rapid growth the Forum has experienced and the period of sleep that followed till 2012, when it was re-launched by a Heads of States Summit in Malta, following to a decision of the Foreign Ministers in Rome. On that occasion, the importance of the 5+5 dialogue at all levels was reaffirmed, and the Foreign Ministers entrusted PAM with the task to facilitate the establishment and continuation of the parliamentary dimension of the 5+5 Dialogue. Since then, PAM has facilitated the organization of such meetings, notably in Nouakchott, Lisbon, and Marseille, and the 5+5 parliamentary format has demonstrated to be one of the most effective instruments of cooperation among the countries of the North and the South of the Mediterranean. The PAM Secretary General also referred to the two new actors with mandates in the defence sectors in the Mediterranean, namely the new unified military capacity of the European Union and to the NATO's Southern Command, which established a Mediterranean and African Coordination Hub in Naples, Italy. He concluded his statement by emphasizing the importance of having a dedicated Secretariat to ensure the continuity of the 5+5 Parliamentary dialogue over the years. Round table on security challenges in the Western Mediterranean The PAM Secretary General introduced the session by referring to the consultation that PAM Secretariat had with key Departments in the United Nations system and the EU for the preparation of the meeting of Algeria. Both institutions had expressed their support for PAM in the organisation of the event and offered some key suggestions relevant to the topics of discussion. He continued on warning of the dangers posed by Daesh, which still represents a threat, despite no longer holding any significant territory, since many of the foreign fighters, who survived the battle- fields, are returning to their countries of origin, while others are taking advantage of the weak security and rule of law in certain areas, such as some zones of the Sahel, to regroup and coordinate further attacks. In this sense, he pleaded for the reinforcement of the fight against terrorism, including with timely adoption of key elements of UN Security Council resolutions into national legislation, especially the new Resolution 2396 on foreign fighters. He concluded by stating that, as requested by the newly established UN Office for Counter-terrorism, the outcome of the meeting will be included in the upcoming Sixth Biennial Review of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, scheduled to take place at the end of June of this year, and at which PAM is invited to attend. He then gave the floor to Mr. Jean Paul Laborde, PAM Advisor on Counter-terrorism. During his intervention, Mr Laborde, France, called for the promotion of international cooperation in criminal matters, while respecting the rule of law and human rights, as well as the review of the mechanism of implementation of this cooperation, in particular when dealing with juridical extradition, in order to fight against violent extremism and terrorism. In particular, he referred to the lack of complementarity between legislations and the practical implementation of cooperation as the main obstacles to cooperation, stressing the key role that PAM and parliamentarians could play in solving them. He therefore recommended a pragmatic approach to the issue, by establishing case-by- case agreements, oriented towards the transfer of procedures which would include, where appropriate, restrictive clauses for the application of the death penalty. Secondly, he also recommended complementarity between religious education and training, so that young people with a religious 3 background are not attracted by violent extremism because of lack of professional qualifications and the impossibility of finding a job. During the debate it followed, the delegates unanimously noted that the 5+5 Forum is a privileged platform,