16.7.2010

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 193/5

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MINUTES OF THE SITTING OF WEDNESDAY, 31 MARCH 2010

(2010/C 193/03)

(The sitting opened at 9.10 a.m.)

IN THE CHAIR: Mr MICHEL

Co-President

1.   Statement by Mr Paul Bunduku-Latha, Minister Delegate to the Minister of Economy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism (Gabon), President-in-Office of the ACP Council.

Mr Bunduku-Latha made a statement on behalf of the ACP Council.

2.   Statement by Mr Angel Lossada, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, (Spain), President-in-Office of the EU Council.

Mr Lossada made a statement on behalf of the EU Council.

3.   Question Time to the Council

Eight questions had been put to the ACP Council.

Mr Bunduku-Latha answered the following questions and supplementary questions:

Question No 1 by Mr Toga (Ethiopia) on Somalia.

Question No 2 by Mr Schmidt and Ms Bearder (absent) on Murray Watson and Patrick Amukhuma.

Question No 3 by Mr William (Seychelles) on assistance to ACP countries affected by piracy activities.

Question No 4 by Mr Kaczmarek on appointment of a Special Representative on sexual violence against women and children in armed conflict.

Question No 5 by Mr Mato Adrover on stepping up regional cooperation between ACP countries and the EU’s outlying regions by setting up areas of cooperation.

Question No 6 by Mr Christensen on biofuels.

Question No 7 by Ms De Sarnez on regional representations in ACP-EU negotiations.

Question No 8 by Mr Manders on young football players coming from Africa to the EU.

The authors of questions 4, 5 and 8 were not present.

Twenty-one questions had been put to the EU Council.

Mr Lossada answered the following questions and supplementary questions:

Question No 14 by Mr Arif on liberalising financial services in the context of EPAs.

Question No 9 by Ms Durant on Haiti.

Question No 11 by Ms Zanicchi on emergency - protection of disappeared Haitian children.

Question No 19 by Mr Schnellhardt on military operation off the coast of Somalia.

Question No 20 by Mr Schmidt and Ms Bearder (absent) on Murray Watson and Patrick Amukhuma.

Question No 13 by Mr Assarid Imbarcaouane (Mali) on the Lisbon Treaty and the Cotonou Agreement.

Question No 15 by Ms Castex on MDG 5.

Question No 22 by Mr William (Seychelles) on Climate Change – Carbon Emission Targets.

Question No 26 by Ms Ronzulli on digital divide.

Question No 27 by Mr Christensen on biofuels.

Mr Lossada answered the following questions and supplementary questions together:

Question No 10 by Ms Jäätteenmäki (absent) on EU responses and coordination in crisis situations and Question No 12 by Mr Tirolien on creation of a European instrument for civil defence.

Question No 17 by Mr Toga (Ethiopia) on Somalia and Question No 18 by Ms Kamar (Kenya) on Somalia.

Question No 25 by Mr Mato Adrover on the establishment of a ‘Euro-African Atlantic cooperation area’ including the EU’s outlying regions (the Canaries, the Azores and Madeira) and neighbouring ACP countries and Question No 29 by Ms Carvalho on transport links between the outlying regions and mainland Europe and neighbouring third countries.

Question No 21 by Mr Leinen on ACP Climate Policy and Question No 23 by Ms Hall on post-CoP15 Climate Change action.

The authors of questions 24, 28 and 16 were not present and, hence, got no answer.

IN THE CHAIR: Mr MILUPI

Co-President

4.   Debate with the Council - catch-the-eye

Mr Bunduku-Latha and Mr Lossada reported on the revision of the Cotonou Agreement, prior to the open debate with the Council.

Speakers: Carvalho, Schmidt, Mitchell, Martin, Sall (Senegal), William (Seychelles), Straker (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Hamatoukour (Cameroun), Naib (Eritrea), Manirakiza (Burundi) and Deerpalsing (Mauritius).

Mr Bunduku-Latha and Mr Lossada responded to the points raised.

5.   The situation in Somalia: debate without resolution

Mr Boubacar Gaoussou Diarra, Head of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), and Mr Mohamed Nur, Speaker of the Transitional Parliament of Somalia, made statements.

Speakers: Kaczmarek, Naib (Eritrea), Castex, Toga (Ethiopia), Michel, Assarid Imbarcaouane (Mali), Sargentini, Mugambe (Uganda), Callanan, Händel, Gitura (Kenya), Lisek and Rosa (European Commission).

Mr Abdullahi (Nigeria) made a statement on the situation in Nigeria and condemned the interference of Libya (proposing Nigeria be split in two) in the sovereign state of Nigeria.

(The sitting closed at 12.50 p.m. and resumed at 3.10 p.m.)

IN THE CHAIR: Mr MILUPI

Co-President

At the request of Mr Martínez Martínez, the Assembly held a minute’s silence to express its condolences for the victims of the bomb attack in Moscow on 29 March 2010.

6.   Report of the economic and social partners

Presentations by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and regional civil society representatives.

Mr Jahier, Chairman of the EESC’s ACP-EU monitoring committee, and Mr Kimera, member of the EESC’s ACP-EU monitoring committee, made their presentations.

Speakers: Mporogomyi (Tanzania), William (Seychelles) and Durant.

7.   Economic Partnership Agreements – state of play: debate without resolution

Speakers: Machado (European Commission), Hamatoukour (Cameroon), Schnellhardt, Sylla (Mali), Carvalho, Arif, Rinaldi, Sithole (Mozambique), Sargentini, Mporogomyi (Tanzania), Sturdy, William (Seychelles), Abdullahi (Nigeria), Zimmer, Tapsoba (Burkina Faso) and Malahoo Forte (Jamaica).

8.   Bananas – the EU-Latin America Bananas Agreement and its impact on ACP and EU banana producers: debate with declaration

Speakers: Jean-Marie (Saint Lucia), Owona Kono (Cameroon), Cologan (President of the Association of European Banana Producers), Machado (European Commission), Mato Adrover, Tirolien, Rinaldi, Amon-Ago (Côte d’Ivoire), Durant, Mugambe (Uganda), Sturdy, Straker (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Hoarau, Gahler, Malahoo Forte (Jamaica), Arif, Ponga and Ramotar (Guyana).

IN THE CHAIR: Mr MICHEL

Co-President

9.   Outermost regions and their role in regional development: debate without resolution

The Assembly was informed that the ACP members of the Bureau would consider the joint motion for a resolution in more detail, pending a decision on its content.

Speakers: Casas (Regional Minister for External Relations of the Government of the Canary Islands), Laissy (European Commission), Owona Kono (Cameroon), Mato Adrover, Tirolien, William (Seychelles), Alfonsi, Hoarau, Ponga, Martínez Martínez and Carvalho.

10.   Urgent topic No 2: Supporting the consolidation of peace in Southern Sudan

Speakers: Rosa (European Commission), Naib (Eritrea), Toga (Ethiopia), Guerrero Salom, Gahler, Schmidt, Durant, Mugambe (Uganda), Händel, Mporogomyi (Tanzania), Gurmai, Schnellhardt, Wlosowicz, Estaras Ferragut, Zanicchi, Hamdi (Sudan), Carvalho and Manamela (South Africa).

(The sitting closed at 7 p.m.)

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