mr president today we are discussing the protection of the arctic which is a very hot topic not only in the european union
firstly because the arctic region is thought to contain huge energy resources as much as twenty of the world's undiscovered technically recoverable reserves the temptation to exploit these resources is irresistible
secondly the arctic environment is exceptionally fragile
the whole of the international community stands to be affected by many of the changes that are already taking place
thirdly territorial disputes hang over the arctic
we risk triggering major conflicts between countries wanting to protect including by military means what countries in the region consider their national interests
it is time for the european parliament to make its position clear as it has taken almost no part in this debate until now with the exception of our resolution passed in october last year calling for an international treaty for the protection of the arctic
it is important to mention that eu member states and the eea associated countries comprise more than fifty of the membership of the arctic council
as it is for the united states the arctic should be a strategic priority for the european union
i fully support our draft proposal that the commission and the council should work towards establishing a moratorium on the exploitation of the geological resources in the arctic for a period of fifty years pending fresh scientific studies
we the european parliament should call on the commission to initiate negotiations with the russian authorities on a number of important issues which are listed in our draft resolution
it is time to include the arctic on the agenda for the forthcoming eu-russia summit
