2017/2227(INI) | [ParlTrack]

Motion for a resolution
Recital O

O. whereas Australian citizens inside and outside their country’s borders have suffered from a number of terrorist attacks of radical Islamist origin; whereas both the EU and Australia cooperate in counter- terrorism activities, including countering violent extremism, efforts to stop the financing of terrorist organisations and the coordination of specific capacity building projects;

Amendment 11 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O a (new)

Oa. whereas the Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement Cooperation (JCLEC), an Australian-Indonesian initiative, aims to enhance expertise of Southeast Asian law enforcement agencies in the fight against terrorism and transnational organised crime and has also received EU funding;

Amendment 12 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O a (new)

Oa. whereas in October 2017 the Australian Government launched its international cyber engagement strategy with a view to addressing issues such as digital trade, cybercrime, international security, and e-government;

Amendment 13 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O b (new)

Ob. whereas Australia has supported the Philippines in promoting security and in the fight against jihadism;

Amendment 14 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital P a (new)

Pa. whereas in January 2012 the Australian Government introduced the Irregular Migration and Border Research Programme in order to address complex issues relating to irregular migration and border management;

Amendment 15 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital Q a (new)

Qa. whereas Australia is one of the most multicultural societies in the world with more than one in four of its population born overseas;

Amendment 16 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital Q b (new)

Qb. whereas around seven million permanent migrants, including many from EU Members States, have settled in Australia since 1945;

Amendment 17 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital R a (new)

Ra. whereas Australia faces significant environmental and economic impacts from climate change across a number of sectors, including water security, agriculture, coastal communities, and infrastructure;

Amendment 18 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S

S. whereas Australia, a member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC), is particularly committed to supporting good governance and economic growth in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Timor-Leste and other Pacific islands and Asian countries, where the EU and its Member States are also key donors;

Amendment 19 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S a (new)

Sa. whereas the Australian Government is investing in programmes such as the Australian Climate Change Science Programme and the Natural Resource Management Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Research Programme to help decision-makers understand and manage likely climate change impacts;

Amendment 2 #

Motion for a resolution
Citation 22 a (new)

- having regard to Australian climate change science: a national framework, published in 2009,

Amendment 20 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S b (new)

Sb. whereas Australia has established a national framework and High Level Coordination Group to develop a plan for implementing climate change science, providing a coordinated approach to address the issue in communities across the country;

Amendment 21 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S c (new)

Sc. whereas on 10 November 2016 Australia ratified the Paris Agreement and the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, reinforcing its commitment to action on climate change, and has developed a range of policies to reduce domestic emissions as well as to support global action;

Amendment 22 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S d (new)

Sd. whereas the Australian Government’s climate change plan includes reducing emissions by five per cent below 2000 levels by 2020 and by between 26 to 28 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, as well as doubling the country’s renewable energy capacity by 2020;

Amendment 23 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S e (new)

Se. whereas the Australian Government has played a leading role in supporting Pacific National Meteorological Services and regional organisations to deliver climate and weather early warning systems;

Amendment 24 #

1. Welcomes the conclusion of the draft FA, which will provide a legally binding instrument to upgrade and strengthen EU-Australia bilateral relations and to increase cooperation in areas such as foreign policy and security issues, human rights and rule of law, global development and humanitarian aid, economic and trade matters, justice, research and innovation, education and culture, agriculture, ~~and~~ maritime affairs and fisheries, as well as in the face of global challenges such as climate change, migration, public health ~~and~~, the fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD);

Amendment 25 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)

2a. Underlines that the exit of UK from the EU bloc and US administration choices in the Middle East and on global issues, such as climate, makes a closer cooperation EU-Australia even more important than in the past;

Amendment 26 #

3. Highlights the special value for the EU and Australia, as partners with the same world vision, to cooperate bilaterally and multilaterally on regional and global issues; underlines the advantage of the EU and Australia acting together in the UN and in the WTO, as well as in bodies such as the G20, to preserve and strengthen a cooperative and rules-based global order in a complex and changing world facing great uncertainty;

Amendment 27 #

Jordi SOLÉ

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)

4a. Acknowledges progress made by Australia in the protection of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; notes at the same time that there is still progress to be made in the field of minorities' rights, notably the need to involve them in policy-making and consultation processes, including the establishment of an Indigenous advisory body to parliament, as recommended by the Referendum Council;

Amendment 28 #

Jordi SOLÉ

5. ~~Support~~Acknowledges the upcoming launch of negotiations for an EU-Australia free trade agreement, which must be conducted in a spirit of reciprocity and mutual benefit while taking into account the sensitivity of certain products; points out the timely launch of these negotiations, given that Australia has already reached several FTAs with important countries in East Asia and the Pacific and is about to conclude them with other relevant countrie and the full exclusion of the most sensitive sectors;

Amendment 29 #

Alojz PETERLE

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5

5. Supports the upcoming launch of negotiations for an EU-Australia free trade agreement, which must be conducted in a spirit of reciprocity and mutual benefit while taking into account the sensitivity of certain products; encourages a high degree of ambition in the area of services; points out the timely launch of these negotiations, given that Australia has already reached several FTAs with important countries in East Asia and the Pacific and is about to conclude them with other relevant countries; urges that the negotiations be concluded within a swift timeframe;

Amendment 3 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital A

A. whereas the European Union and A. Australia concluded an FA on 7 August 2017; whereas the close and strong relationship between Australia and the European Union and its Member States has long historical roots and is based on common values and principles, such as respect for democracy, human rights, gender equality, the rule of law, including international law, as well as peace and security; whereas people to people links are deep and longstanding;

Amendment 30 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)

5a. Stresses that Australia is a major agricultural and agri-food exporter globally; therefore, during the negotiations the EU must ensure protection of vulnerable European sectors such as: fishery, agriculture, meat, dairy products and textile through specific provisions, including strengthened protection of geographical indications, introduction of transitional periods, protection of intellectual property rights (IPR), tariff quota, traceability and labelling of products;

Amendment 31 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)

5b. Underlines that throughout these negotiations, the EU must guarantee transparency and accountability mechanisms to protect citizen’s interests, including a regular dialogue with stakeholders and civil society organisations, during and after negotiations;

Amendment 32 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 c (new)

5c. Underlines that in the negotiations of a FTA with Australia, the EU should take into account Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) ‘needs and requests without reducing consumers’ protection as well as environmental, social and labour standards; highlights that four ILO conventions on governance and environment should be integrated in the FTA with Australia;

Amendment 33 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6

6. Underlines Australia’s active role in the EU’s higher education cooperation programmes through the EU-Australia Bilateral Education programme, and notes positively that since 2015 Australian universities have been able to enter into Erasmus+ mobility agreements; notes that this cooperation should be strengthened even further to promote mutual benefits for students and researchers and put them in the position to acquire multicultural and innovative competences;

Amendment 34 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)

6a. Recalls the EU and Australia are important partners in research and innovation cooperation in view of contributing to sustainable economic development and as a means to further build a knowledge-based society;

Amendment 35 #

Mario BORGHEZIO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7

~~7. Commends Australia for its support and for aligning its sanctions regime with the European Union following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and military interventions in Eastern Ukraine;~~deleted

Amendment 36 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7

Amendment 37 #

Georgios EPITIDEIOS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7

7. ~~Commends Australia for its support and for aligning its sanctions regime with the European Union following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and military interventions in Eastern Ukraine~~Welcomes the alignment of Australian policy with that of the European Union regarding their relations with Russia;

Amendment 38 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)

7a. Welcomes Australia’s support for targeted international sanctions against individuals and entities responsible for military aggression, terrorism, and human rights abuses, including in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine and occupied Crimea;

Amendment 39 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)

7a. Commends Australia´s Office of National Assessments for its support in the provision of international, political, strategic and economic analysis and its liaison with international partners to ensure responses to matters of common interest;

Amendment 4 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital B

B. whereas the EU and Australia celebrated 55 years of cooperation and diplomatic relations in 2017; whereas this relationship has gained renewed dynamism in the last few years; whereas all Member States have diplomatic relations with Australia and 25 of them have Embassies in Canberra;

Amendment 40 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)

7b. Recognizes Australia´s critical role in the ´Five Eyes Intelligence Community´ and its support towards the security of both EU Member states and transatlantic partners, commends Australia´s operational agreement with Europol and highlights the potential towards further expansion of intelligence sharing and operational cooperation with the Australian government;

Amendment 41 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 c (new)

7c. Commends the Australian model of migration and border managements and welcomes the strong commitment of Australia in advancing a proactive, intelligence-led, mobile and technologically enabled border security force that deploys operational resources to both on and offshore zones to thwart illicit smuggling and illegal migration and recognises the added value of the Australian model´s adaption by the EU;

Amendment 42 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 d (new)

7d. Welcomes Australia´s advancement in the use of biometrics for enhanced entry control, expansion of automated entry systems and its continuously evolving contributions to cyber security in a matter that ensures sophisticated risk assessments and strong cooperation with international partners that yield enforcement outcomes;

Amendment 43 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 e (new)

7e. Commends Australia´s Maritime Border Command and Border Force Counter-Terrorism Unit´s contributions to intelligence analysis, coordinated surveillance and on-site responses as an active and continuous demonstration of Australia´s capacity to maintain the integrity of the UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea;

Amendment 44 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8a. Welcomes the commitment of both partners to advancing the protection and promotion of human rights, democratic principles and the rule of law, including in multilateral fora and with third partners, as envisaged in the FA; welcomes the Australia's election to the United Nations Human Rights Council for the period 2018-2020; highlights the launch by Australia in 2008 of the Closing the Gap strategy on addressing Indigenous disadvantage; underlines that this strategy enjoys bipartisan support and that an annual progress report is presented by the Prime Minister to Parliament;

Amendment 45 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8a. Notes that while Australia raised the number of its troops in Afghanistan to 300 in May 2017, secret defence documents gave an insight into some operations of Australia’s special forces, including incidents of troops killing unarmed men and children; in the light of shared values of democracy, human rights and historical roots which are enshrined in the UN Charter, calls on Australia’s government to shed light on this situation and eventually to take the necessary measures;

Amendment 46 #

Urmas PAET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9

9. Welcomes the strong commitment of both partners on cooperation in combating terrorism as set out in the FA; underlines the importance of ever-closer bilateral cooperation on exchanging information on foreign fighters and their return; encourages both partners to continue to ensure effective implementation of the four pillars of the UN Counter-Terrorism Strategy; commends Australia’s role in the Global Coalition against Daesh and its significant work in the fight against international terrorism in Southeast Asia; encourages strong cooperation also in matters of cyber security;

Amendment 47 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)

9a. Supports Australia’s cyber engagement initiatives and pledges its cooperation on measures to develop strong cyber relationships with international partners, including the European Union and its Member States;

Amendment 48 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)

9b. Recognises that global events from health crises and armed conflict to irregular migration and terrorism have direct and indirect security implications for European Union, its Member States and Australia;

Amendment 49 #

Georgios EPITIDEIOS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10

10. Welcomes the engagement by the EU and Australia envisaged in the FA on intensifying their dialogue and cooperation on migration and asylum; underlines that the high level of global mobility requires a holistic and multilateral approach based on international cooperation and on shared responsibilities; welcomes the fact that both partners proactively contribute to the on-going negotiations of both the UN Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the Global Compact on Refugees; welcomes the general legal approach to irregular migration adopted by Australia.

Amendment 5 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital E

E. whereas the EU, as a global actor, should further strengthen its presence in the large and dynamic Asia-Pacific area, where Australia is a natural partner of the EU as well as an important actor itself; whereas a stable, peaceful and rules- based Asia-Pacific region, in line with our principles and standards, is useful for the EU´s own security and interests;

Amendment 50 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11

11. Underlines the importance of regional frameworks of cooperation – such as the Bali Process – with countries of origin, transit and destination in order to save lives, to break smuggler networks and to manage migration and refugee flows; welcomes Australia’s strong commitment with the UNHCR regarding the resettlement of refugees and the increase in its global humanitarian funding; encourages Australia to continue to contribute to finding a positive solution to the situation of asylum-seekers and migrants retained in Papua New Guinea and Nauru; calls on Australia to live up to its international commitments and take responsibility for around 800 refugees and asylum seekers stranded in a detention centre on Papua New Guinea where UNHCR said many lack medical and mental health care;

Amendment 51 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11

11. Underlines the importance of regional frameworks of cooperation – such as the Bali Process – with countries of origin, transit and destination in order to save lives, to break smuggler networks and to manage migration and refugee flows; welcomes Australia’s strong commitment with the UNHCR regarding the resettlement of refugees and the increase in its global humanitarian funding; ~~encourage~~commends Australia ~~to continue to contribute to finding a positive sol~~´s contributions to ~~the situation of~~resettling asylum- seekers and migrants retained in Papua New Guinea and Nauru and underlines the added value that the adoption of similar policies by the EU would bring to Member States external border security management;

Amendment 52 #

Francisco ASSIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)

11a. Notes positively Australia’s efforts towards a redress of the historical injustices done to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in the wake of the national apology to the Stolen Generations made in 2008; encourages the government of Australia to refresh its strategy to improve the lives of indigenous Australians, in particular pertaining to the gap in life expectancy, and to strengthen its degree of commitment so as to achieve effective equality and enduring national reconciliation;

Amendment 53 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)

11a. Calls to enhance counter-terrorism cooperation via joint-training exercises between Member State emergency response teams and EU agencies such as Europol and its European Counter- Terrorism Centre (ECTC) with key elements of the Australian national security architecture such as the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO), Australian Defence Forces (ADF) and the Australian Federal Police;

Amendment 54 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)

11a. Respects the right of the Government of Australia to introduce border control measures and immigration policies it considers necessary to safeguard its interests and citizens, as well as to ensure the wellbeing of vulnerable individuals, in line with international commitments and conventions;

Amendment 55 #

Alojz PETERLE

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12

12. Reiterates that the fight against climate change requires the support of the whole international community; recognizes Australia as a global partner in climate action and anticipates further foreign policy endeavours along these lines; welcomes Australia’s ratification of the Paris Agreement and the commitment laid down in the FA to enhance cooperation in order to fight climate change; takes note of Australia’s target of reducing emissions by 26 to 28 % below 2005 levels by 2030, which was reaffirmed in the 2017 Review of Climate Change Policies; highlights that this review maintains the commitment to help other countries through bilateral and multilateral initiatives;

Amendment 56 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)

12a. Welcomes Australia’s shared commitment with the European Union and its Member States to introduce domestic measures and support global action to reduce emissions in line with mutual support for the 2015 Paris climate change agreement;

Amendment 57 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 b (new)

12b. Supports Australia’s ambitions to reduce emissions by between 26 and 28 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, and its commitments to do so via technological innovation and an expansion of its clean energy sector;

Amendment 58 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 c (new)

12c. Applauds Australia for supporting international action on climate change, and in particular in the Indo-Pacific region, through bilateral and multilateral aid programmes and its commitment to provide at least $1bn to build climate change resilience and reduce emissions in developing countries;

Amendment 59 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 d (new)

12d. Supports Australia’s co- chairmanship of the Green Climate Fund and encourages its ongoing efforts on the provision of financial support to the Pacific region and to vulnerable developing countries;

Amendment 6 #

Mario BORGHEZIO

Motion for a resolution
Recital F

~~F. whereas the European Union and Australia are closely aligned in foreign policy issues, such as Ukraine, Russia, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Middle East;~~deleted

Amendment 60 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 e (new)

12e. Welcomes Australia’s commitment to provide $200mn over four years to the Green Climate Fund to support developing countries to grow their economies in a sustainable way and help adapt to climate change;

Amendment 61 #

Georgios EPITIDEIOS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13

13. Recalls that Australia, the EU and its Member States are important actors in development cooperation and humanitarian assistance, not only in the Pacific region but also in all parts of the world where this is needed; highlights that both sides focus their cooperation in areas such as economic growth, good governance and environmental resilience;

Amendment 62 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)

14a. Encourages the further deepening of cooperation between the European Union, its Member States, and Australia on issues relating to the protection and promotion of human rights, gender equality, the rights of disabled people, and indigenous people and other minority groups;

Amendment 7 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital H

H. whereas in 2016 the European Union was Australia’s second largest trading partner – its second source of imports (19.3 %) and third destination for exports (10.3 %) – and whereas both sides maintain a wide range of economic interests; whereas EU foreign direct investment stock in Australia amounted to 117.7 billion (2015) and Australian direct investment stock in the EU was EUR 21.7 billion (2015);

Amendment 8 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital K

K. whereas Australia, a country committed to international global governance, has been a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on five occasions and has been an active member of the G20 since its establishment, chairing its summit in Brisbane in 2015 in a very good cooperation with the EU; whereas Australia has recently been elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council;

Amendment 9 #