26 Amendments of Knut FLECKENSTEIN related to 2018/2158(INI)
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the EU’s relations with Russia must bare based on respect for the principles of international law and credible deterrence, and on a principled approach inhence, due to Russia’s disregard of this respect, EU’s relations with Russia currently are based on cooperation in selected areas of common interest as defined in the Foreign Affairs Council conclusions of 14 March 2016;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the EU remains open to such a stronger relationship and to dialogue leading thereto, and wishes to return to cooperative relations with Russia, shouldwhen the Russian authorities meet their international and legal obligations;
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the implementation of the Minsk Agreement and broader respect for international law remains a precondition for closer cooperation with Russia;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas new areas of tension between the EU and Russia have arisen since 2015, including: Russian intervention in Syria; large-scale military exercises (Zapad 2017); rRussian interference aimed at influencing elections and stoking tensions in European societies; restrictions on fundamental freedoms and extensive human rights violations in Russia, including the systemic targeting of human rights defenders and civil society in Russia, including the arbitrary detention of OyubTitiev, head of Human Rights Centre Memorial in Chechnya, discrimination against the Tatar minority in occupied Crimea, and the politically motivated persecution of Alexei Navalny and many others; cyber attacks and assassinations on European soil allegedly carried out by Russian intelligence agents using chemical weapons; the intimidation, arrest and imprisonment of foreign citizens in Russia in breach of international law, including Oleg Sentsov and many others; the organisation of illegal and illegitimate elections in the Donbas; flawed presidential elections lacking any real choice and with restrictions on fundamental freedoms; violations of arms control agreements;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas Russia’s polycentric vision of the concert of powers contradicts the EU’s belief in the multilateral rules-based orderadherence to and support for the multilateral rules-based order would create conditions for closer relations with the EU;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Underlines that Russia's direct and indirect involvement in armed conflicts such as in Eastern Ukraine and its illegal annexation of Crimea and violation of the territorial integrity of Georgia constitute a deliberate violation of democratic principles and fundamental valuesinternational law;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Believes therefore that the EU- Russia relationship requires a new framework of cooperation only in those areas that are necessarythat allows for political dialogue, particularly, on security-related issues, and in areas of common interest for re-establishing trust, and with a view to guaranteeing security in the EU’s neighbourhood and a European peace order; is of the view that the PCA should be discontinuremain in force until this new framework is defined;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Believes that non-implementation of the Minsk Agreements would demonstrates Russia's lack of good will to contribute to solving the conflict in Eastern Ukraine and its capacity to guarantee European security; asks for consultations to be advanced within the Normandy format;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Believes in the importance of finding ways to de- escalateing current tensions and of engaging in consultations with Russia to identify measures aimed at reducinge the risk of misunderstandings and miscalculations, misinterpretation and misreading;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Believes, however, that the Skripal case and cyber attacks allegedly orchestrated by the Russian intelligence services show an interest on the Russian side to further increase tensions in Russia’s relations with the EU and its Member States;
Amendment 176 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Is deeply concerned about the links between the Russian government and the extreme right and populist nationalist parties and governments in the EU, such as in Hungary, that pose threat to the fundamental values of the Union, which are enshrined in EU Treaty Article 2 and reflected in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, including respect for democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights;
Amendment 187 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Highlights that the global challenges of climate change, energy securitythe environment, energy security, digitalisation together with algorithmic decision making and Artificial Intelligence, foreign and security issues, non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the fight against terrorism and organised crime call for selective engagement with Russia;
Amendment 200 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
Amendment 228 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Regrets the still much concerning human rights situation, the widespread and undue restrictions to the rights of freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly; is concerned that the authorities have cracked down on, harassed and persecuted human rights defenders, protest activists and other critics;
Amendment 245 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Reiterates its support for the five principles guiding the EU's policy towards Russia, and calls for further definition of the selective engagement principle; recommends that the focus be placed on issues relating to the MENA region, terrorism, non-proliferation, arms control, migration and climate change; calls for a high-level dialogue between EU, EEU and AA/DCFTA countries, including joint efforts to safeguard the UNSC- endorsed JCPOA with Iran and bringing an end to the war in Syria; calls for a high-level dialogue between EU, EEU and AA/DCFTA countries and suggests to establish a dialogue on working-level as a stepping stone to facilitate the high-level dialogue; reiterates that while consultations between the EU and Russia on cyber terrorism and organised crime need to continue, Russia’s systematic hybrid threats require strong deterrence; calls, in this context, for the initiation of a high-level EU-EEU-China-Central Asia dialogue on Belt and Road Initiative and connectivity;
Amendment 261 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Underlines that Russia and the EU will remain key economic partners in the foreseeable future, but Nord Stream 2 reinforces EU dependency on Russian gas supplies, threatens the EU internal market and is not in line with EU energy policy, and therefore needs to be stopped;
Amendment 270 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. NotUnderlines that EU-Russia Ccross- border cooperation programmes and the constructive cooperation in the Northern Dimension Partnerships and in the Barents-Euro-Arctic bring tangible benefits to the citizens of cross-border areas and support the sustainable development of these areas; recommends in this respect to foster all these positive areas of constructive cooperation;
Amendment 280 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Stresses the importance of continued political and financial support for civil society activists, human rights defenders, bloggers, independent media, investigative journalists, outspoken academics and public figures, and NGOs; calls on the Commission to programme more ambitious financial assistance to Russian civil society from the existing external financial instruments; supports increased funding for journalist training and exchange with European journalists and for instruments that advance human rights and democracy, such as the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR) and the European Endowment for Democracy (EED);
Amendment 285 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Calls on the EU and its Member States to strengthen their activities in support of civil society and human rights defenders and to improve trial observation and the appropriate follow-up; stresses the importance of reinforcing protection measures for human rights defenders as well as giving access to multi-entry Schengen Visas; proposes high level meetings with Russian human rights defenders and to publicly call on the Russian authorities to foster a favourable working climate for them; calls to ensure the immediate release of human rights defenders currently in jail;
Amendment 295 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Calls for more people-to-people contacts and student exchanges also in the Erasmus Mundus frameworkwith a focus on youth, on increased dialogue and cooperation between EU and Russian experts, researchers, civil societies and local authorities and for intensified student, vocational trainee and youth exchanges, particularly in the Erasmus+ framework; supports in this regard increased funding for the new Erasmus+ programmes 2021 - 2027; notes that the EU provides the highest number of academic mobility opportunities to Russia in comparison with other international partner countries;
Amendment 308 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Calls for the EU institutions and Member States to make greater efforts to build resilience, particularly in the cyber and media fields; calls for EU-wide support for the European cyber-security industry and a stronger engagement in research; supports increased funding of Stratcom for counter-acting disinformation and encourages, in this context, the promotion of Europeanuniversal values in Russian by East Stratcom; Calls for the EU institutions and Member States to ensure effective implementation of the measures outlines in the Action Plan against Disinformation;
Amendment 321 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Believes that the EU should stand ready to consider adopting further sanctions, including targeted personal sanctions, in response to Russia’s continued actionlift sanctions provided that Russia respects fully international law and to consider adopting further sanctions, if Russia’s violation of international law continues;
Amendment 342 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. CallsSupports the Dutch initiative for an European version of the Magnitsky ActU Global Human Rights Sanction Regime and calls for it to be launched swiftly;
Amendment 349 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Encourages confidence-building measures in the Donbas region; supports a mandate for placing a UN peacekeeping force into this region of Eastern Ukraine;
Amendment 354 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Regrets that there has been no official inter-parliamentary dialogue within the framework of the Delegation to the EU-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee (PCC) due to the punitive actions; calls on both sides to remove the obstacles, so that the EU- Russia PCC can re-convene; perceives the exchange of views and dialogue between parliamentarians of the PCCs as an essential tool to minimise risks of further misunderstandings and misconception;
Amendment 363 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24