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External Relations COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION EN 14961/05 (Presse 318) PROVISIONAL VERSION PRESS RELEASE 2701st Council Meeting General Affairs and External Relations External Relations Brussels, 12 December 2005 President Mr Jack Straw Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom * Some external relations items were adopted without debate at the 2700th meeting on General Affairs (14960/05). PRESS Rue de la Loi 175 B – 1048 BRUSSELS Tel.: +32 (0)2 285 8239 / 6319 Fax: +32 (0)2 285 8026 [email protected] http://ue.eu.int/Newsroom 14961/05 (Presse 318) 1 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 Main Results of the Council The Council welcomed a report by HR Solana and Commissioner Rehn on the EU's future role and contribution in Kosovo and asked them to continue to examine these issues, including in the areas of police and the rule of law. The Council took note of a draft EU strategy, "the EU and Africa: towards a strategic partnership", to be adopted by the European Council on 15 and 16 December. It expressed its grave concern about the tense and volatile situation in the Ethiopia/Eritrea border region and reaffirmed its commitment to see peace and security restored. A number of external relations items were adopted without debate as part of the General Affairs session (see press release 14960/05). 14961/05 (Presse 318) 2 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 CONTENTS1 PARTICIPANTS................................................................................................................................ 4 ITEMS DEBATED WESTERN BALKANS - Council conclusions................................................................................... 6 EUROPEAN NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICY..................................................................................... 9 EU STRATEGY FOR AFRICA........................................................................................................ 10 ETHIOPIA/ERITREA - Council conclusions ................................................................................... 11 OTHER ITEMS APPROVED Please see General Affairs press release: 14960/05 Presse 317. 1 Where declarations, conclusions or resolutions have been formally adopted by the Council, this is indicated in the heading for the item concerned and the text is placed between quotation marks. The documents whose references are given in the text are available on the Council's Internet site http://ue.eu.int. Acts adopted with statements for the Council minutes which may be released to the public are indicated by an asterisk; these statements are available on the abovementioned Council Internet site or may be obtained from the Press Office. 14961/05 (Presse 318) 3 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 PARTICIPANTS The Governments of the Member States and the European Commission were represented as follows: Belgium: Mr Karel DE GUCHT Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Didier DONFUT State Secretary for European Affairs, attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Czech Republic: Mr Cyril SVOBODA Minister for Foreign Affairs Denmark: Mr Per Stig MØLLER Minister for Foreign Affairs Germany: Mr Frank-Walter STEINMEIER Minister for Foreign Affairs Estonia: Mr Urmas PAET Minister for Foreign Affairs Greece: Mr Petros MOLYVIATIS Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Ioannis VALINAKIS State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Spain: Mr Miguel Ángel MORATINOS CUYAUBÉ Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Mr Alberto NAVARRO GONZÁLES State Secretary for the European Union France: Mr Philippe DOUSTE-BLAZY Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms Catherine COLONNA Minister with responsibility for European Affairs Ireland: Mr Dermot AHERN Minister for Foreign Affairs Italy: Mr Gianfranco FINI Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Cyprus: Mr George IACOVOU Minister for Foreign Affairs Latvia: Mr Eduards STIPRAIS Permanent Representative Lithuania: Mr Antanas VALIONIS Minister for Foreign Affairs Luxembourg: Mr Jean ASSELBORN Deputy Prime Minister, Minister with responsibility for Foreign Affairs and Immigration Hungary: Mr Ferenc SOMOGYI Minister for Foreign Affairs Malta: Mr Michael FRENDO Minister for Foreign Affairs Netherlands: Mr Bernard BOT Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Atzo NICOLAÏ Minister for European Affairs Austria: Ms Ursula PLASSNIK Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs 14961/05 (Presse 318) 4 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 Poland: Mr Stefan MELLER Minister for Foreign Affairs Portugal: Mr Fernando DE OLIVEIRA NEVES State Secretary for European Affairs Slovenia: Mr Dimitrij RUPEL Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Marcel KOPROL State Secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister Slovakia: Mr Eduard KUKAN Minister for Foreign Affairs Finland: Mr Eikka KOSONEN Permanent Representative Sweden: Ms Laila FREIVALDS Minister for Foreign Affairs United Kingdom: Mr Jack STRAW Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Mr Douglas ALEXANDER Minister of State for Europe Commission: Ms Benita FERRERO-WALDNER Member Mr Olli REHN Member Mr Louis MICHEL Member General Secretariat of the Council: Mr Javier SOLANA Secretary-General/High Representative for the CFSP The Governments of the Acceding States were represented as follows: Bulgaria: Mr Ivailo KALFIN Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ms Meglena KUNEVA Minister for European Affairs Romania: Mr Mihai-Razvan UNGUREANU Minister for Foreign Affairs- 14961/05 (Presse 318) 5 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 ITEMS DEBATED WESTERN BALKANS - Council conclusions The Council discussed the situation in the Western Balkans and relations between the EU and the countries of this region and adopted the following conclusions: "Western Balkans 1. The Council welcomed the Commission’s Progress Reports covering Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro, and Kosovo as defined by UN Security Council Resolution 1244. 2. The Council drew encouragement from the region’s recent progress that the EU’s policies, based primarily on the fair and rigorous use of conditionality and a clear European perspective, were proving effective. To further support this progress the Council agreed the new European Partnerships, which identify, update and prioritise the reform agenda for each country. The Council strongly encouraged each country to respond to its European Partnership by preparing a national action plan, including not only legislative but also budgetary and administrative planning, to implement the identified priorities. The European Partnerships will continue to be a key tool for guiding countries' efforts to move closer to the EU. 3. The Council reaffirmed its commitment to the full implementation of the Thessaloniki agenda, which emphasises that the future of the Western Balkans, as potential candidate countries, lies in the European Union. The Council reiterated that each country’s progress towards the EU would depend on how quickly it conforms to the Copenhagen criteria, which include, inter-alia, respect for and protection of minorities, and the requirements of the Stabilisation and Association process, including full co-operation with the ICTY. In this context it welcomed and held a preliminary exchange of views on the road map for the European perspective of the Western Balkans countries contained in the Commission’s Enlargement Strategy Paper, which proposes conditions to be met in order to reach each stage of the Stabilisation and Association Process. 4. The Council took note of the recent reports by the ICTY President and Chief Prosecutor to the UN Security Council. The Council reiterated that full co-operation with the ICTY is essential to achieve lasting reconciliation in the region and to lift a fundamental obstacle to EU integration. In this context it warmly welcomed the recent arrest of Ante Gotovina and congratulated the ICTY, and the Croatian and the Spanish authorities for their work in bringing it about. It urged Serbia and Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina to build on this positive development and take decisive action to ensure that all remaining fugitive indictees, notably Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, are finally brought to justice. 14961/05 (Presse 318) 6 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 12.XII.2005 Albania 5. The Council welcomed progress in Albania, and noted the Commission’s judgement that this paves the way for concluding negotiations on a Stabilisation and Association agreement. The Council called on Albania to carry forward its reform agenda and in particular to intensify efforts in a number of key areas, including concrete results in the fight against organised crime and corruption, clear improvements in media freedom, and further strengthening of public sector governance. The Council noted that the July 2005 parliamentary elections marked some progress in the conduct of elections but stressed that implementation of the recommendations in the OSCE/ODIHR report of 8 November was necessary to address the outstanding shortcomings. Bosnia and Herzegovina 6. The Council welcomed the opening of negotiations for a Stabilisation and Association agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina in November 2005, which marked an historic moment in the country’s development. To maintain this momentum, the Council urged further progress in particular in development of the legislative framework and administrative capacity, implementation of police reform, adoption and implementation of all necessary Public Broadcasting legislation, and full co-operation with the ICTY. Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 7. The Council noted that the Commission's
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