COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS
FINAL COMPROMISE AMENDMENTS
Draft Opinion on “the Guidelines for the 2021 budget – Section III”
(2019/2213(BUD))
Rapporteur: Nikos Androulakis (S&D)
COMPROMISE AM 1 (AMs 8 (Castaldo/NI), 9 (Gahler/EPP), 10 (Grošelj/EPP)) –
Paragraphs 1a (new) and 2
1a.
Is concerned by the rapid worldwide spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and its
impact on the affected countries; is convinced that international cooperation is crucial to
overcome this global crisis; believes that the EU should take the lead in the global efforts to
contain the pandemic and mitigate its impact; calls on the EU to show solidarity with the
affected third countries, particularly those in its immediate neighbourhood, including by
mobilising additional resources via the EU's external financing instruments to help
affected countries rebuild their economies, mitigate the socio-economic impact of this crisis
and to strengthen the capacities of public health systems worldwide;
2.
Underlines the strategic importance of enlargement policy in the Western Balkans
and of its neighbourhood policy; (AM 8) emphasises the need to increase the funding for the
Western Balkan countries and the countries of the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood in
order to support political and economic reforms, with a focus on the most committed partners
following the principle of "more for more and less for less";
reminds of the need to
implement strict conditionality in regard to financial support; (AM 9)
stresses the need to
particularly support pro-European and pro-democratic forces in these regions, thereby
fostering the development of EU values and respect for the rule of law; (AM 10)
COMPROMISE AM 2 (AMs 15 (Strik/Greens), 18 (Strik/Greens), 29 (Demirel/GUE),
43 (Androulakis, Picula/S&D)) – Paragraph 2a (new)
2a.
In view of the greater uncertainty and instability (AM 43)
in the region (AM 29)
, calls
on the Commission to step up its financial support for the United Nations Relief and Works
Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in 2021, in order to preserve
uninterrupted basic services to millions of Palestine refugees (AM 43)
and allow the Agency
to carry out its critically important mandate; (AM 15)
deplores the continued destruction and
confiscation of EU-funded humanitarian assistance in the West Bank; is concerned by the
lack of resolve of the EEAS and the Commission, as highlighted by the European Court of
Auditors, to secure compensation from the Israeli authorities, as requested by the European
Parliament in its resolution of September 2018; (AM 18)
COMPROMISE AM 3 (AMs 21 (Strik/Greens), 25 (Strik/Greens), 26 (Androulakis,
Picula/S&D), 28 (Gahler/EPP), 49 (Paet/RE)) – Paragraph 3
3.
Recalls that human rights are an integral part of the EU's external action policy;
(AM 26) reiterates
the need for (AM 26)
increased (AM 49) funding dedicated to supporting
human rights worldwide, with a particular focus on the protection of human rights defenders
,
in particular those most at risk (AM 26);
stresses in this regard the need to continue the
Human Rights Defenders Mechanism (Protectdefenders.eu) and to increase the funding
dedicated to it; (AM 25)
believes that the EU should strictly refrain from budget support as
a modality to provide assistance in countries which grossly fail to meet international
standards in the field of human rights and democracy or which fail to demonstrate their
commitment to fighting corruption; (AM 21) highlights the importance of election
observation missions
, notably by local civil society groups, (AMs 25, 28) and calls for an
appropriate level of funding;
COMPROMISE AM 4 (AMs 40 (Biedrón, Glucksmann/S&D), 50 (Paet/RE)) –
Paragraph 3a (new)
3a.
Calls for further funding for strategic communication actions to counter
disinformation campaigns, which are increasingly used to undermine the democratic order
in the Union and in countries in the Union's near neighbourhood; (AM 50)
highlights the
importance of the flagship project of the European External Action Service’s East Strat
Com Task Force - EU vs. Disinfo in the fight against disinformation, propaganda and
foreign influence; (AM 40)
COMPROMISE AM 5 (AMs 4 (Guteland/S&D), 17 (Strik/Greens), 37 (Strik/Greens)) –
Paragraph 3b (new)
3b.
Underlines that climate change is changing the geopolitical landscape as well as
increasing humanitarian needs in many parts of the world; insists that the next budget
should help the Union meet its obligations under the Paris Agreement, should be fully
aligned with the objective of limiting global warming to under 1.5 °C, and should
contribute to (AM 4)
halting and (AM 37)
reversing the decline in biodiversity; underlines
in this regard also the importance of effective climate and (AM 4)
environmental, including
(AM 17)
biodiversity proofing of the budget; stresses that every effort should be made to
ensure that the overall climate mainstreaming target is reached over the whole period 2021-
2027; (AM 4)
COMPROMISE AM 6 (AMs 12 (Biedron, Glucksmann/S&D), 20 (Strik/Greens), 31
(Biedron/S&D)) – Paragraph 3c (new)
3c.
Stresses the (AM 20)
importance of gender mainstreaming (AM 12)
and the need
for proper indicators and a specific methodology, as well as regular monitoring, to analyse
the impact of the EU budget on gender equality; (AM 20)
calls on the EEAS to improve the
gender and geographical balance among its staff; (AM 31)
stresses the need for specific
measures to ensure the presence of gender advisers in EU delegations and CSDP missions
and operations; (AM 20)
COMPROMISE AM 7 (AMs 14 (Loiseau et al./RE), 36 (Androulakis, Picula/S&D), 44
(Sikorski/EPP), 47 (Paet/RE)) – Paragraph 3d (new)
3d.
Emphasises the importance of providing adequate financial support to frame a
genuine European Defence Union, promote strategic autonomy (AM 36)
and bolster the
EU’s role on the global level (AM 47)
; stresses in particular the importance of maintaining
Parliament’s position regarding the amounts for the European Defence Fund (EDF) and for
military mobility; (AM 14)
stresses that continued support to and enhanced coordination of
defence-related policy and actions under EDA, PESCO, EDF and other initiatives should be
ensured; (AM 36)
urges the Commission to provide for the funding of the administrative and
operating expenditures of the European Defence Agency and Permanent Structured
Cooperation from the Union budget, thereby restoring the budgetary function of the EP as
provided for by Article 41 TEU; (AM 44)
COMPROMISE AM 8 (AMs 34 (Castaldo/NI), 35 (Grošelj/EPP), 41 (Strik/Greens), 48
(Paet/RE)) – Paragraph 5a (new)
5a.
Calls for increased transparency and scrutiny of EFI funding in recipient countries,
so as to ensure that financial resources are used to the most efficient and effective degree
possible; (AMs 35, 34)
demands regular exchanges through a structured dialogue between
the European Parliament and the Commission that would allow the European Parliament to
evaluate in detail the use of the budget; (AM 41)
calls for increased cooperation and
consultation with local beneficiaries throughout the budgetary planning and implementation
phases; stresses the need to promote the visibility of EFIs by raising awareness of their
positive impact and benefits (AM 35)
in order to strengthen the impact of funding and
enhance EU public diplomacy; (AM 48)
EN
