Activities of Andrey KOVATCHEV related to 2021/2244(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
2021 Report on Albania (debate)
Amendments (27)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 15 a (new)
Citation 15 a (new)
— having regard to the Council of Europe’s report ‘Beyond Definitions: a call for action against hate speech in Albania – a comprehensive study’, published in November 2021;1a _________________ 1a https://rm.coe.int/beyond-definitions- eng/1680a464b2
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas enlargement is one of the EU’s most effective foreign policy instruments, as it contributes to extending the reach of the Union’s fundamental values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, the rule of law, peace building and respect for human rights;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the EU is Albania’s biggest trading partner and largest donor and whereas the country has benefited from EUR 1,24 billion in EU pre- accession funding under IPA I and IPA II since 2007;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas the EU remains fully committed to support Albania’s strategic choice for EU integration; whereas Albania remains an important geopolitical ally and a trustworthy foreign policy partner, thanks to its efforts to advance regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas Albanian citizens have enjoyed visa-free travel to the Schengen area since December 2010;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F b (new)
Recital F b (new)
Fb. whereas Albanian citizens have been able to participate in student, academic and youth exchanges under the Erasmus+ programme since 2015;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recalls the need to uphold the pace and credibility of European integration by promptly opening accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia, as continuously recommended by the Commission, given that bothe countriesy haves fulfilled the conditions and deliver sustained results across fundamental areas;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Calls for the immediate start of negotiations with Albania, as prescribed by the European Commission; the country should be assessed and stimulated based on its own progress and merit, without this being interlinked with developments in any other country;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Reaffirms the joint responsibility of Albania’s political forces to strengthen constructive political dialogue and cooperation, enabling an effective functioning of the country’s democratic institutions by continuing to improve governance, transparency and pluralism and by enabling the active participation of civil society; expresses its serious concern about the polarised political climate and lack of sustainable cross-party cooperation that continue to hamper the democratic process; encourages the use of the Jean Monnet Dialogue (JMD) to build the consensus necessary for generating a democratic parliamentary culture and trust and to develop true inter-party dialogue;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Reaffirms the joint responsibility of Albania’s political forces to strengthen constructive political dialogue and cooperation, enabling an effective functioning of the country’s democratic institutions by continuing to improve governance, transparency and pluralism and by enabling the participation of civil society; recalls the importance of reaching a consensus between all political actors on the importance of building a constructive parliamentary tradition and culture;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Recalls the need to keep addressing the remaining electoral shortcomings by further improving the accessibility and integrity of elections preventing misuse of public administration/resources and vote- buying, including through digitalisation, data protection, equitable access to media and revised rules on political party financing;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Proposes an EU Election Observation Mission to Albania ahead of the next parliamentary election; calls on the Albanian government to ensure the full implementation of the ODIHR and Venice Commission recommendations regarding the electoral shortcomings in due time before the upcoming general elections;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Expresses concern about the pervasive allegations of vote buying, and recalls that initiation of proceedings against those accused of vote buying is among the conditions set by the Council; notes with regret that convictions in cases involving high-level officials remain limited and investigations have so far not resulted in a substantial number of final convictions of high-ranking officials;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Encourages the government to accelerate administrative preparations for the upcoming accession negotiations; stresses the importance of having in place coherent government structures to effectively coordinate EU integration matters; underlines the need to improve intra-service coordination, evaluation and monitoring of EU-related reforms, to advance decentralisation, country-wide modernisation and depoliticisation of the civil service and to enable conditions to conduct the upcoming population census; the census should be carried out in an atmosphere of trust and transparency, so that all national minorities can be counted accurately, without fear of intimidation;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Calls on the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the Commission to improve coordination and to address disinformation and hybrid threats that seek to undermine the EU perspective by more strategically underscoring the EU’s relevance to citizens in the Western Balkans;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Welcomes advances in ensuring equal opportunities and calls for further improvements in the enforcement of gender equality, property rights, data protection, rights of people with disabilities and minority rights; welcomes the adoption of the by-law on minority education from December 2020; calls on the government to adopt the remaining implementing legislation, including on self-identification and use of minority languages;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Calls for further efforts to ensure and protect the full enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities; notes that persons with disabilities were among the most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; deplores that during the April 2021 elections, persons with disabilities encountered barriers and difficulties to vote; calls for further efforts to address violence against persons with disabilities, improve overall accessibility (including services and information), and to promote employment; points out that the quality of education for disabled children, especially deaf children, remains a cause for concern;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 b (new)
Paragraph 17 b (new)
17b. Considers that reports of numbers of HIV infections doubling since last year are highly concerning; recalls that the National Strategy for People Living with HIV expired in 2020 and has not been renewed; recalls that access to PEP and PrEP for those most at risk can significantly contribute to decreasing new infections, and recalls that these are still unavailable to LGBTI persons; calls on the government to take appropriate measures, in liaison with civil society, to address the rising numbers of HIV infections and ensure access to healthcare of those most vulnerable;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 b (new)
Paragraph 17 b (new)
17b. Calls on Albania to swiftly adopt the remaining pending secondary legislation ensuring the full protection of national minorities;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Underlines the importance of taking decisive action against money laundering and terrorist financing by ensuring a consistent track record of proactive investigation, prosecution and final convictions for high-level corruption and confiscation of criminal assets; stresses the need of further alignment of its legislation with the EU acquis is this regard:
Amendment 213 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29
Paragraph 29
29. Welcomes the ongoing efforts that should lead to systemic improvements in tackling organised crime, including the trafficking of humans, drugs, firearms and goods, along with cybercrime, violent crime, extremism and terrorist threats; commends the ongoing regional, bilateral and international cooperation on dismantling transnational crime networks, including with the EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies, such as Europol and Eurojust; highlights that Albania is the only country from the region that has signed cooperation agreements with all justice and home affairs agencies of the EU and that the first fully fledged joint operation with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) outside the European Union was deployed at the Greek-Albanian border in May 2019; commends that Albania has allowed air monitoring by EU Member State law enforcement services to detect production of narcotics;
Amendment 220 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 b (new)
Paragraph 29 b (new)
29b. Expresses concern over the large numbers of firearms available in Albania; stresses the need to improve standard procedures and mechanisms to counter the illicit trade of small arms and light weapons, and to step up the investigation and prosecution of firearms trafficking;
Amendment 221 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 c (new)
Paragraph 29 c (new)
29c. Underlines that the contribution of Albania to the protection of the European Union’s external border is of crucial importance; Stresses that border protection and the prevention of cross- border crime must continue to be a priority, and must be conducted in full respect for the fundamental rights enshrined in applicable international and regional laws and principles;
Amendment 227 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Highlights EU funding of sustainable post-earthquake and post- pandemic recovery and supports the ongoing efforts towards Albania’s democratic, green and digital transformation; underlines the need to step up EU assistance and funding for the rule of law, improvements, and encouraging sustainable green growth, biodiversity, innovation, competitiveness, property rights and reversal of the demographic decline;
Amendment 244 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 a (new)
Paragraph 33 a (new)
33a. Stresses the need to improve the visibility of and communication concerning EU aid and Union financing in Albania; recalls, in this regard, the performance reward under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance to North Macedonia and Albania and notably the substantial support the EU has provided to the Western Balkans to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and to limit the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic;
Amendment 257 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 35 a (new)
Paragraph 35 a (new)
35a. Welcomes the removed roaming charges between the six Western Balkan states; urges all relevant parties to negotiate a plan that would lead to the eventual elimination of roaming charges between Albania and the EU Member States;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 37 a (new)
Paragraph 37 a (new)