Eu-Russia Summit

EDM number 211 in 2006-07, proposed by Danny Alexander on 21/11/2006.

That this House notes that the EU-Russia Summit in Helsinki on 24th November is due to begin negotiations on a new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and Russia; sees this as an opportunity for the EU to send a clear and united message about its desire for a balanced and constructive relationship with Russia based on respect for human rights and the rule of law; urges EU leaders to raise the serious concerns about continuing human rights abuses in Russia; notes Russia's apparent willingness to use energy supplies as a foreign policy weapon; attaches particular importance to the need for any new bilateral agreement to contain effective provisions on the supply of energy; believes that the energy relationship between the EU and Russia should be governed by rules on trade and investment that are fair, reciprocal, transparent and legally binding; recognises that some of these rules are already contained in the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), which Russia has signed and is provisionally bound by; regrets that Russia has so far refused to accept its obligations under the ECT; and calls on the Government to ensure that the new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Russia upholds the ECT as a legally binding commitment on the part of those countries that have signed it.

This motion has been signed by a total of 54 MPs.