Session of the 30th ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly in the EP in Brussels. Opening speeches by Fitz JACKSON and Louis MICHEL, Co-Presidents of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly

Brussels

MICHEL, Louis (ALDE, BE)

speech

joint meeting

30th ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (T)

ACP-EU Joint Assembly

JACKSON, Fitz A. (JM)

30th ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly : extracts from the Opening session

SOUNDBITE (French), Louis MICHEL (ALDE, BE), Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , <p>Dear friends as we know terrorism has no boarders and requires international governance. We have seen the horrible attacks lately in Paris, Bamako, Tunis, we have seen the Russian plane that was shot down, the Egyptian Sinai, the attacks in Ankara, the Fotocol and most recently in California. These remain present in our minds and they have an effect on all of us as humanists and universalists.</p>

SOUNDBITE (French), Louis MICHEL (ALDE, BE), Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , In Paris we must all commit to fighting climate change. We must take on the responsibility according to our capabilities. Funding for that, as a special UN envoy for climate change Mary Robinson said, is not a question of charity but it's providing the resources to build a joint future based on security.

SOUNDBITE (English), Louis MICHEL (ALDE, BE), Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , "We support Africa's effort to manage it's own security. In ten years, the EU has provided 1.2 billion Euro in support of African-Union led peace operations through African peace facilities. 16 missions and operations have been deployed on the African continent so far bringing practical support and concrete results in a number of fragile or post-crisis Countries. In Darfour, Somalia, South Sudan, Central African Republic, Uganda, DRC and so on.

SOUNDBITE (English), Fitz JACKSON, Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , <p>"We must also restate the importance of policy coherence for development, not only as the relate to climate change, but to the whole sphere of development as well. Despite the major impact of trade and investment on economic activities that impact the environment and responses to related problems like climate change, there is no single institution, at a global level, task with ensuring the mutual supportiveness of international trade regime with sustainable development."</p>

SOUNDBITE (English), Fitz JACKSON, Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , "For me personally this assembly is representative of the democratic ideals. Dialogue, debate and real exchange of ideals that should characterise global governance."

SOUNDBITE (English), Fitz JACKSON, Co-President of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly , "We must resist any attempt, however subtle or descrete, to separate the A the C and the P."