Activities of Witold Jan WASZCZYKOWSKI related to 2023/0200(COD)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on establishing the Ukraine Facility
Amendments (18)
Amendment 109 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) The Union should also foster close consultation and association of local authorities, which embrace a large variety of sub-national levels and branches of government, including regions, municipalities, rayons and hromadas and their associations, as well as their participation in the recovery, reconstruction and modernisation of Ukraine, based on sustainable development and through the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals at local level. Funding should place a special emphasis towards locally based small and medium enterprises and operating in good standing within regions across Ukraine to ensure that sustainable development is directly interlinked with local businesses and entrepreneurs; the introduction of private equity firms that invest in SMEs to assist their growth and incubation should be considered as ideal partners for targeted regional investment. The Union should recognise the multiple roles played by the local authorities as promoters of a territorial approach to local development, including decentralisation processes, participation and accountability, and further enhance its support for local authorities’ capacity building.
Amendment 126 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 31
Recital 31
(31) Reconstruction from the damage caused by the war of Russian aggression cannot be limited to rebuilding what was destroyed as it was before the war. The reconstruction offers an opportunity to support Ukraine in its process of integration into the Single Market and in accelerating its sustainable green and digital transitions, in line with Union policies. The Facility should promote reconstruction in a way that modernises and improves Ukraine’s economy and society, building on Union rules and standards, by investing in the transition of Ukraine towards a green, digital and inclusive economy and in the recovery, reconstruction and modernisation of its critical infrastructure, productive capacity and human capital in a resilient way. It should also take into account the need to create habitable spaces resistant to the likely future aggressive actions of Russia using the best modern practices of urban planning.
Amendment 131 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 31 a (new)
Recital 31 a (new)
(31a) The Facility should also include provisions that would allow using frozen and confiscated Russian funds and assets as additional sources of financing, should an appropriate legal framework of doing so be established;
Amendment 133 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 32
Recital 32
(32) The Facility should contribute to alleviating and repairing enormous environmental damage caused by Russian aggressors, including the floods caused by blowing up the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam and bombing and mining of a large territory of Ukraine. It should also contribute to the adherence to the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and should not contribute to environmental degradation or cause harm to the environment or climate. In particular, funding allocated in the context of the Facility should be coherent with the long-term goal of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre- industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1,5°C. It should also be coherent with the objective to increase the ability to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change and foster climate resilience, and with the support of biodiversity conservation, circular economy and zero-pollution. Particular attention should be given to actions that create co-benefits and meet multiple objectives, including for climate, biodiversity and the environment.
Amendment 138 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 34
Recital 34
(34) The implementation of this Regulation should be guided by the principles of equality and non- discrimination, as elaborated in the Union of Equality strategies. It should promote gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, and seek to protect and promote women’s and girls’ rights in line with the EU Gender Action Plans and relevant Council conclusions and international conventions. The implementation of the Facility should be in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and ensure accessibility in its investments and technical assistance. It should also support and promote the implementation of a child care system reform strategy in Ukraine.
Amendment 142 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 35
Recital 35
(35) Strengthening the rule of law, including the independence of the judiciary, the fight against corruption, money laundering and organised crime, as well as transparency, good governance at all levels, through guaranteeing the legal personality of municipalities and maintaining support for NATO standardisation and integration to ensure that stabilisation efforts are long-lasting and thus generate encouraging conditions for investment while safeguarding the free and pluralistic media and fighting disinformation, strengthening public administration reform, including in the fields of public procurement, competition and State aid, remain key challenges and are essential for Ukraine to come closer to the Union and to prepare to fully assume the obligations of Union membership. In view of the longer-term nature of the reforms pursued in those areas and the need to build up track records, support under the Ukraine Facility should address those issues as early as possible.
Amendment 148 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 38
Recital 38
(38) Actions under the Ukraine Facility should also support, where appropriate, confidence-building measures and processes that promote justice, truth- seeking, reparations and guarantees of non- recurrence as well as collection of evidence of crimes committed during the war. for the purpose of creating an international tribunal to consider crime of war on aggression and crimes committed by Russia during the full-scale war in Ukraine.
Amendment 155 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 39
Recital 39
(39) The support under the Facility should be made available under the precondition that Ukraine continues to respect effective democratic mechanisms and institutions, including a multi-party parliamentary system, and the rule of law, and to guarantee respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities., as well as continued advances in fighting corruption;
Amendment 210 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 78
Recital 78
(78) It is important to guarantee both flexibility and programmability as well as stability in providing Union support to Ukraine. For that purpose, payments under the Facility should occur according to a fixed quarterly schedule, subject to availability of funding, based on a payment request submitted by Ukraine and following verification by the Commission of the satisfactory fulfilment of the relevant conditions. In case a condition is not fulfilled in accordance with the indicative timeline set in the decision approving the Plan, the Commission should deduct from the payment an amount corresponding to those conditions. The disbursement of the corresponding withheld funds could take place during the next payment window and up to twelve months after the original deadline set out in the indicative timeline, provided the conditions have been fulfilled.
Amendment 233 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 90
Recital 90
(90) The reinforcement of internal control systems, the fight against corruption, the promotion of transparency, good administration, and efficient public financial management and strengthening the civil society are important reform priorities for Ukraine and should be supported by the Facility.
Amendment 283 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point c
(c) foster the transition to a sustainable and inclusive economy and a stable investment environment; support the integration of Ukraine into the Single Market; repair, rebuild and improve social infrastructure, such as housing, healthcare facilities, schools and higher education institutions, and research infrastructure; strengthen economic and social development, with particular attention to women and youth, including through quality education, training, reskilling and upskilling, specific exchange programmes for students, researchers and public servants, and employment policies, including for researchers; support culture and cultural heritage; strengthen strategic economic sectors and support investment and private sector development, with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and innovation, as well as on agriculture and rural development, aquaculture and fisheries; restructure Ukraine’s financial markets, including banking sector and capital markets; increase domestic revenue mobilisation; strengthen Ukraine’s ability to trade;
Amendment 292 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point d
(d) further strengthen the rule of law, democracy, the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including through promoting an independent judiciary, reinforced security, the fight against fraud, corruption, organised crime and money laundering, tax evasion and tax fraud; compliance with international law; strengthen freedom of media and academic freedom and an enabling environment for civil society; foster social dialogue; promote the rights of children, as well as non-discrimination and tolerance, to ensure and strengthen respect for the rights of persons belonging to minorities and the promotion of gender equality; reinforce the effectiveness of public administration and support transparency, structural reforms and good governance at all levels, including in the areas of public financial management and public procurement and State aid; support initiatives and bodies involved in supporting and enforcing international justice in Ukraine;
Amendment 299 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point f
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point f
(f) support decentralisation and local development. in accordance with plans put forward by Ukraine;
Amendment 311 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 5
Article 4 – paragraph 5
5. The Facility shall not support activities or measures which are incompatible with Ukraine’s National Energy and Climate Plan, if available, with Ukraine’s Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement, or that promote investments in fossil fuels, or that cause significant adverse effects on the environment or the climate, unless such activities or measures are strictly necessary to achieve the objectives of the Facility, taking into account the need to rebuild and modernise infrastructure damaged by the war in a resilient way, and they are accompanied, where relevant, by appropriate measures to avoid, prevent or reduce and, if possible, offset these effects.
Amendment 321 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1
Article 5 – paragraph 1
1. A precondition for the support to Ukraine under the Facility shall be that Ukraine continues to uphold and respect effective democratic mechanisms, including a multi-party parliamentary system, and the rule of law, and to guarantee respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. , and to continue to fight corruption and build adequate safeguards and institutions for countering it;
Amendment 339 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Member States, third countries, international organisations, international financial institutions or other sources may provide additional financial contributions to the Facility. Such contributions shall constitute external assigned revenue within the meaning of Article 21(2), points (a)(ii), (d), and (e) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046. Moreover, the Facility shall be open for additional financial contributions coming from the Russian frozen and / or confiscated assets and funds should the relevant legal framework to do so be put in place;
Amendment 364 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) Member States, Ukraine, contracting parties to the Agreement on the European Economic Area and countries covered by Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2021/947 and Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2021/1529 of the European Parliament and of the Council22 , as well as United Kingdom; _________________ 22 Regulation (EU) 2021/1529 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 September 2021 establishing the Instrument for Pre-Accession assistance (IPA III) (OJ L 330, 20.9.2021, p. 1).
Amendment 451 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 1
Article 25 – paragraph 1
1. Payments of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan to Ukraine under this Article shall be made in accordance with the budget appropriations and subject to the available funding. Payments shall be made in instalments. An instalment may be disbursed in one or more tranches.