What changed between the draft committee report and the plenary report

Removed:27. Encourages the VP/HR and the Commission to strengthen the southern dimension of the EU’s neighbourhood, including through increased dialogue, and to secure adequate resources for the timely and effective implementation of the new agenda for the Mediterranean;

Added:(d) the more effective use of the integrated political crisis response mechanism and the creation of a Security Council, comprised of Member State ministers, in order to respond swiftly in emergencies and develop an integrated approach to conflict and crises;

Removed:28. Takes note of the political agreement on a comprehensive partnership package with Tunisia; recalls that this memorandum of understanding comes with conditions and urges the Commission to ensure compliance with these;

Added:(e) the revision of the Treaties as provided for in Article 48 TEU, with the objective of, inter alia, enshrining qualified majority voting for matters relating to the CFSP;

Removed:29. Highlights the necessity of engaging more strategically with the Gulf countries, particularly on the promotion of regional security, cooperation, climate action and human rights;

Added:(f) the regular revision of the threat analysis underpinning the Strategic Compass for Security and Defence to allow for Member States to converge on and define a common threat perception;

Removed:30. Welcomes the resumption of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran; condemns the brutal crackdown by Iranian police and security forces, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, on demonstrations following the death of Mahsa Amini;

Added:28. Reiterates that Parliament plays an integral role in the CFSP, making a specific contribution thereto by virtue of its parliamentary diplomacy and its distinct instruments, channels and contacts, including its democracy support programmes, which have great potential to engage key political stakeholders and facilitate democratic governance; stresses, in particular, the added value of parliamentary diplomacy during the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and highlights, in this context, the valuable cooperation at political and technical level between the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the European Parliament;

Removed:31. Welcomes the Abraham Accords and expects that they will lead to peace, stability and the de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East; reiterates its unwavering support for a negotiated two-state solution for Israel and Palestine on the basis of the 1967 borders, with two sovereign, democratic states and with Jerusalem as their shared capital;

Added:29. Emphasises the importance of parliamentary diplomacy, which should be conducted through the existing channels, like the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament, official delegations and democracy support activities, such as regular parliamentary dialogues with partner countries; insists that the EU’s foreign and security policy must orient itself towards the objectives of crisis prevention, cooperative regional security cooperation, global climate and environmental action, strengthening human rights and ensuring the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030 Agenda; calls for the further development of the EU’s preventive diplomacy, including peace mediation and dialogue, as a proactive foreign policy tool; urges the EEAS to conduct ‘lessons learnt’ exercises and analyse prior European diplomatic efforts and their results, as well as the work of Special Representatives and Special Envoys; insists that it is necessary to strengthen parliamentary diplomacy with partners in Latin America, Africa and Asia in order to contribute to the EU’s objective of strengthening relations with like-minded partners to address common geopolitical, economic, social and environmental challenges;

Removed:32. Stresses the need to scale up the EU’s presence in Central Asia in response to Russian and Chinese engagement in the region; underlines the EU’s interest in increasing economic relations and intensifying political ties with the countries of Central Asia, in part to minimise the circumvention of sanctions against Russia and Belarus;

Added:30. Calls for further clarification on the functioning, format of representation and accountability of the ‘Team Europe’ approach in order to ensure the effective allocation of resources and avoid duplication in the EU’s foreign and security policy; insists that Parliament is part of ‘Team Europe’ and should be treated as such;

Removed:33. Reiterates that a peaceful, stable and rules-based Indo-Pacific is a vital European interest and encourages, to this end, closer political ties with like-minded partners in line with the EU strategy for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, in particular with Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand;

Added:31. Highlights the necessity of updating the 2010 Declaration on Political Accountability as the framework for relations between the EEAS and Parliament; believes that Parliament needs the means to leverage its instruments to counteract the global backsliding of democracy, including through election observation and mediation, conflict prevention, strengthened local-level communication on democracy and parliamentary diplomacy; highlights Parliament’s complementary role in the EU’s diplomacy;

Removed:34. Notes that geopolitical challenges have strengthened the shared interest of the EU and India in ensuring security, prosperity and sustainable development; welcomes the creation of the EU-India Trade and Technology Council; calls for an India-EU summit to keep bilateral relations high on the agenda;

Added:32. Highlights the role of the VP/HR as a bridge builder between the CFSP and EU external relations to ensure the highest level of coordination and coherence in EU external action; regrets, nonetheless, that in some cases, there is a lack of clarity in the external representation of the EU; stresses the need to clearly define the competences of the VP/HR, the President of the Commission and the President of the European Council with regard to the EU’s external action and representation;

Removed:35. Considers that the rise of China remains one of the primary geopolitical challenges of the 21st century and requires a multi-dimensional response through which the EU maintains its engagement with China on a number of key issues while de-risking its relationship by reducing economic over-dependence in critical sectors;

Added:33. Believes that there is a need for stronger institutionalised parliamentary oversight of the EU’s external action, including regular and timely, yet secure, access to confidential information, briefings in the European Parliament and swifter channels of communication with the EEAS; recalls, in this context, Parliament’s right to information on CFSP matters under Article 36 TEU; welcomes the establishment of the high-level geopolitical dialogue and encourages more open discussions, including by continuing regular consultations with members of the Commission and the EEAS and by involving Parliament in the implementation of the European Peace Facility, the Strategic Compass and the Global Gateway initiative;

Removed:36. Condemns the Chinese government-led system of forced labour and its crimes against humanity in Xinjiang; recalls that the ‘One China policy’ remains a cornerstone of EU-China relations;

Added:34. Affirms that Parliament should make full use of its oversight and budgetary powers with regard to Union decisions on international affairs; calls for a change in the structure of the CFSP budget, with one budget line per civilian CSDP mission, in order to allow for better scrutiny and increased transparency;

Removed:37. Strongly condemns China’s continued military provocations against Taiwan and reiterates its firm rejection of any unilateral change to the status quo in the Strait of Taiwan;

Added:35. Regrets the fact that the CFSP budget for civilian CSDP missions has only marginally increased from the multiannual financial framework (MFF) for 2014-2020 to the MFF for 2021-2027, even though the number of missions and the tasks they perform have increased, the security environment has become more challenging and the cost of operations has risen; urges the Member States to dedicate sufficient funding to the CFSP in light of the need to defend peace, democracy and the rule of law and to ensure better coordination with other policy areas; calls, in this context, for an appropriate adjustment to the MFF and for increased financing for EU external action;

Removed:38. Highlights that resources need to be pooled, meaning a genuine ‘Team Europe’ approach is needed to effectively enhance the EU’s political footprint in the Pacific;

Added:36. Reiterates further that the EU and its Member States need to mainstream democracy support further into the programming of the EU financial instruments and stresses, in this context, the need to equip relevant EU delegations with appropriate means to increase public diplomacy activities and to develop their strategic communication capabilities to fight against disinformation and propaganda; calls for the EEAS – both its headquarters and EU Delegations – to be strengthened through the provision of the appropriate financial and human resources so that the EU can be better prepared for current and emerging global challenges, such as increasing instability, more assertive authoritarianism and the climate emergency; calls on the Commission and the EEAS to pursue a foreign and security policy that is in accordance with Parliament’s resolution of 10 March 2022 on the EU Gender Action Plan III;

Removed:39. Underlines that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a crucial ally in reinforcing rules-based multilateralism; calls for close cooperation in line with the EUASEAN joint leaders’ statement of 14 December 2022 in order to shape regional dynamics beyond the binary constraints of Chinese-American competition;

Added:37. Welcomes the implementation of the pilot project entitled ‘Towards the creation of a European Diplomatic Academy’; calls for the establishment of a permanent structure supported by the necessary resources; calls for an exploration of and a decision on ways to access the EEAS for those graduating from this Academy, which can contribute to the full development of an autonomous EU diplomacy shaped by a common diplomatic culture from an EU perspective; reiterates its call on the Commission to create a permanent residential training programme on the EU’s external action and CFSP for junior diplomats from EU candidate countries;

Removed:40. Welcomes the signature of the Post-Cotonou Agreement and its regional protocols, which, once ratified, will allow for an unprecedented regional focus on African, Caribbean and Pacific countries; urges the Commission and the VP/HR to ensure that the EU-African Union summit of February 2022 is followed up on in order to deepen cooperation on initiatives of shared interest and to meet the needs of partner countries in Africa;

Added:Reinforcing and defending a rules-based multilateralism

Removed:41. Takes note of the summit between the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, but expresses concern that it did not mark a turning point in biregional relations, particularly given the growing influence of China and Russia in Latin America and the Caribbean; calls on the Member States and the EEAS to pursue proactive diplomacy in the region, with a strong emphasis on defending the multilateral global order, international law and respect for democracy and human rights; welcomes the conclusion of negotiations on the EU-Chile Advanced Framework Agreement and the EU-Mexico Association Agreement; urges the Commission to advance decisively on the agreement with Mercosur and recalls the need to finalise the ratification of the EU-Central America Association Agreement;

Added:38. Emphasises that multilateral forums, in particular the UN and its agencies, should be considered the EU’s format of cooperation of choice; expresses concern, in this respect, about the increasing relevance of exclusive formats of cooperation, which bear witness to increasing competition between great powers; observes, at the same time, that international institutions and norms are increasingly being instrumentalised and points, in this context, to disputes within the WTO and the WHO; stresses that this trend puts the EU in a delicate position, balancing the need to appeal for a broad and inclusive concept of multilateralism while prioritising cooperation with selected like-minded partners at the same time; calls on the Member States to reinforce inclusive forms of multilateral governance and encourages, in this context, the Commission, the EEAS and the Council to step up interinstitutional cooperation with multilateral organisations that are integral to the international rules-based system and the management of global commons, including the UN and its agencies, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the WHO, the WTO and NATO;

Removed:42. Calls for stronger EU engagement in the Arctic in view of the consequences of climate change, industrial and economic competition and freedom of navigation;

Added:39. Notes the necessity of ensuring unity, coherence and complementarity of efforts between the EU and NATO in upholding international peace and security; underlines that NATO remains the cornerstone of European security and calls for cooperation between NATO and the EU to be enhanced further while strengthening the European pillar within NATO, inter alia by consistently meeting NATO’s defence spending benchmark of 2 % of gross domestic product; calls for greater cooperation with NATO on fighting disinformation and hybrid threats originating from third countries;

Removed:43. Highlights that the southern polar region should be considered an emerging area of interest given shifting geopolitical dynamics; underlines the importance of multilateral cooperation in the management of marine protected areas;

Added:40. Calls for the EU institutions and the Member States to actively support a comprehensive institutional reform of multilateral institutions, first and foremost the United Nations system and particularly the UN Security Council, which should include measures aimed at limiting the use of veto, boosting regional representation, making executive bodies accountable to the assemblies that elect them, and redefining the composition of the Security Council’s membership to better reflect geopolitical reality, including by establishing a permanent seat for the EU; calls on the Commission to focus on ensuring the EU’s strategic indispensability in an increasingly multipolar world; calls for the EU institutions to ensure that the EU speaks with one voice in the UN, particularly in the Security Council; calls for continued dialogue with the UK to be ensured in order to maintain cooperation within the Security Council; calls on all UN member states to take action to revoke Russia’s veto powers in the Security Council;

Added:41. Calls on the VP/HR to promote a convincing, durable and targeted democratic narrative that demonstrates that democracy delivers for individuals and societies across the globe and is capable of withstanding autocratic pressure and influence; deplores the fact that the People’s Republic of China, Russia, Iran and other totalitarian or authoritarian regimes use information manipulation and malign interference as integral instruments to exert pressure on multilateral institutions and democratic values and norms, to erode checks on the abuse of power, to increase the incidence and severity of human rights violations, to constrict spaces for civil society, independent media and democratic opposition movements and to spread anti-Western disinformation; encourages, in this context, investment in strategic communications and the fight against foreign interference and the spread of disinformation, and welcomes the EEAS’s engagement with the UN on a global code of conduct for information integrity;

Added:42. Highlights the increasing phenomenon of transnational threats against human rights defenders and political activists by the national authorities of their countries or by proxies; encourages the Commission and the Member States to provide foreign human rights defenders and activists residing in the EU with appropriate financial and other means to enable them to continue their work remotely and without fear of retaliation; praises the relentless work of civil society organisations and human rights defenders worldwide and calls for the EU to step up its support of civil society and human rights defenders; expresses its serious concern about the increasing attacks on various minorities worldwide, including the LGBTIQ community and religious minorities, such as Christians; emphasises the need to address intersectionality in all EU actions, including in the implementation of the CFSP, in order to promote fully fledged gender equality;

Added:43. Recognises that several actors in the Global South are becoming more assertive; emphasises, in this context, that the term ‘Global South’ projects a degree of unity onto what is in reality a very diverse group of actors characterised by diverging aspirations and alignments; recognises the international leverage of these actors;

Added:44. Recalls that the EU is the world’s leading donor of official development assistance; underlines that the EU must remain a reliable ally in development cooperation worldwide; expresses its concern that the EU is facing increasing scepticism and disengagement; calls for the EU to respond to partner countries’ expectations and to deliver quickly on political agreements with them in order to show that the EU is a key and strategic partner and demonstrate that the international rules-based system can meet contemporary challenges; encourages, in this context, stronger political presence in countries where the EU’s footprint has predominantly consisted of development cooperation; highlights, in particular, the importance of the EU’s presence in Africa and calls on the Commission and the Member States to consolidate the political dialogue at national and regional levels, as well as providing a diversified range of technical support, including funding at government and local community levels, to achieve greater efficiency and visibility; stresses the importance of establishing political agreements with third countries, based on common European values and fundamental rights;

Added:45. Recalls that the EU should be a more assertive global actor for peace and human security; notes that effective development cooperation and an ambitious trade policy are also crucial in addressing the root causes of migration and other challenges facing the Union;

Added:46. Calls on the Commission to effectively and swiftly use the Global Gateway as a sustainable alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative and as an instrument to increase the EU’s presence and visibility worldwide by means of infrastructure and telecommunications investment that creates national value in partner countries and enables their socio-economic development, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement, while pursuing the EU’s prosperity and security interests; recalls that the Global Gateway is to be understood as a strategic concept integrating foreign, economic and development policy; stresses, in this context, that coordination with international financial institutions, well-defined private-sector involvement and tailored strategic communications are essential in order for the instrument to reach the desired scale; welcomes, in this context, the first high-level Global Gateway Forum hosted by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in October 2023; insists that Parliament should be more closely involved in the decision-making process in order to guarantee transparent governance and make sure that the Global Gateway is properly coordinated with the G7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment;

Added:47. Notes that EU investment and assistance should focus on common objectives at the most appropriate level of action, with clear visibility in receiving countries, and on tailor-made investments that respond to our partners’ needs, as defined through a more proactive and constructive engagement with them;

Added:48. Calls for multilateral solutions to new challenges and realities, such as cybersecurity, biotechnology and artificial intelligence; insists on the centrality of multilateralism for the effective maintenance of order in outer space and on the need to deepen current initiatives, and launch new ones, to preserve the peaceful uses of outer space;

Added:Asserting interests through the development of robust strategic alliances and like-minded partnerships

Added:49. Emphasises the need to build strategic solidarity between like-minded partners as the best response to a more dangerous and unpredictable security environment; emphasises the need to strengthen existing partnerships with countries that share our values, particularly on issues such as strategic dependencies, economic coercion, political interference and disinformation, and highlights the significance of building new alliances, inter alia in the Global South, taking into account mutual needs and interests in order to foster real and balanced partnerships;

Added:50. Stresses the importance of strong and strategic transatlantic cooperation, including that between NATO and the EU, based on shared values, interests and objectives and on the principle of a partnership of equals; calls on the Commission to foster closer ties with key partners in both the US and Canada in order to counter global challenges that affect our shared values, interests, security and prosperity; urges the Commission and the VP/HR to engage closely with both partners by intensifying and consolidating the cooperation mechanisms already established, including the EU-US Trade and Technology Council; stresses, in particular, the need to progress on key foreign policy files, including on our respective relations with China, on Europe’s Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood, on Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean and on the Indo-Pacific; points, with regard to the latter, to the dedicated US-EU dialogue on security and defence and the Indo-Pacific with a view to developing closer and more ambitious cooperation, and highlights the first ever EU-US joint naval exercise in the north-western Indian Ocean in March 2023; calls for stronger transatlantic cooperation on trade and on combating challenges caused by rapid technological changes and growing cyber threats;

Added:51. Recalls that the US is the EU’s most important ally; reiterates its request that EU-US summits be held on a regular basis in order to lend sustained impetus to the indispensable nature of transatlantic cooperation; reiterates its support for the establishment of a transatlantic political council that would serve as a forum for regular and effective institutional dialogue between the US and the EU on foreign and security policy; calls on the House of Representatives to establish a standing Congressional delegation for the Transatlantic Legislators’ Dialogue (TLD), in line with the 1999 joint statement on the establishment of the TLD between the US Congress and the European Parliament, as this would enhance our capacity for policy dialogue and cooperation;

Added:52. Calls for the EU and the US to make decisive progress in the negotiations on strengthening international supply chains for critical minerals with a view to finding mutually acceptable solutions to address the discriminatory impact of the US Inflation Reduction Act;

Added:53. Welcomes the conclusion of the Windsor Framework and recalls the importance of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement for a strong and constructive partnership with the UK; highlights the crucial and multi-layered significance of the Northern Ireland Protocol and the Windsor Framework for long-lasting relations with the UK;

Added:54. Regrets the fact that the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement does not include provisions on cooperation on foreign policy and defence; calls, in this context, for greater involvement of the UK in European security and defence projects and for more structured and regular engagement with the UK on foreign affairs, building on the constructive experience of EU-UK cooperation in countering Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, including the adoption and monitoring of sanctions; welcomes the joint missions to third countries by representatives of the EU and the UK with a view to preventing the circumvention of sanctions; highlights shared interests and collective responsibilities and calls for more permanent forms of coordination with regard to foreign and security policy in various regions; welcomes the UK’s participation in the European Political Community;

Added:55. Welcomes both the launch of the Belarus-EU consultative group to enable continuous dialogue between the EU and Belarusian democratic forces, and the ongoing support provided to Russian human rights defenders and to independent media inside and outside Russia; reiterates its support for the Belarusian democratic opposition, all political prisoners and the brave activists and journalists in Belarus who continue to resist the regime of the illegitimate leader and the regime’s complicity in the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine in spite of ongoing crackdowns, and who have expressed their desire to achieve the democratic development of Belarus and its membership of the EU, inter alia at the New Belarus Conference held in Warsaw in August 2023; underlines that such efforts demonstrate the fundamental role of civil society in strengthening democracy;

Added:56. Condemns the Lukashenka regime’s active role in supporting Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine; emphasises the urgent need for the mirroring of sanctions between Belarus and Russia, with Lukashenka’s regime being fully complicit in the war crimes committed, such as the abduction of thousands of Ukrainian children;

Added:57. Welcomes the 2023 enlargement package and the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans presented by the Commission and calls on the Council to demonstrate genuine political commitment to the EU membership perspective of the countries in Western Balkans; notes that this should include advancing accession negotiations with Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia; supports efforts to achieve, as a matter of priority, the relevant constitutional changes in North Macedonia and calls on all political forces to play a constructive role in this regard; asks, in particular, the governments of the Member States that set this additional requirement for North Macedonia to do their utmost to support these efforts; regrets the unjustified delays in the accession processes of North Macedonia and Albania and recalls that candidate countries should be assessed on the basis of their own merit in complying with the objective criteria for accession, including their implementation of EU-related reforms and their policy alignment with the CFSP, such as the positions and restrictive measures adopted in response to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine; welcomes the fact that the majority of countries in the Western Balkans are aligned with the CFSP, while calling on Belgrade to urgently do the same, particularly considering that Serbia is one of the very few European countries not yet in line with the sanctions adopted in response to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine; recalls that accession can only proceed once the country in question aligns with EU sanctions against Russia and makes significant progress on EU-related reforms; remains very concerned about the destabilising influence on the whole region of the Serbian authorities;

Added:58. Regrets the fact that high political tensions and polarisation in Montenegro delayed progress on EU-related reforms and plunged the country into a deep political and institutional crisis, stalling Montenegro’s EU accession process; welcomes the formation of a new government and stresses the importance of it being able and committed to take forward EU-related reforms and keep Montenegro firmly on the EU strategic path;

Added:59. Welcomes the Commission’s recommendation to open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria is achieved; urges the country’s political leaders to implement the substantial set of reforms, including electoral reforms, in accordance with the decisions of domestic and international courts in order to ensure the principles of equality and non-discrimination for all citizens and constituent peoples, as enshrined in its constitution and in full respect of the judgments of domestic and international courts, including all rulings of the European Court of Human Rights regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina; reiterates its call for targeted sanctions against destabilising actors within Bosnia and Herzegovina, notably Milorad Dodik; welcomes the agreement reached to extend the mandate of the EU Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Operation Althea until 2 November 2024 and recalls that this mission still plays a pivotal role in the security and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

Added:60. Welcomes the fact that the unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine has prompted the EU to reprioritise its enlargement policy; reaffirms that the pace of the enlargement process depends both on the individual countries’ capacity to meet the criteria for accession and on the commitment of the political leaders in the Western Balkan countries and the EU Member States; is concerned about the rise of ethnonationalism in the Western Balkans; calls on the EEAS to monitor the situation closely in order to prevent tensions; underlines the importance of the democracy support activities facilitated by Parliament, such as the Jean Monnet Dialogue and the Parliamentary Dialogue Process;

Added:61. Welcomes recent signals regarding the accelerated timeline for candidate countries; calls for it to be ensured that ongoing and future accession negotiations will not be delayed because of particular national interests or the need to reform the Treaties; reiterates the need to continue to work on the accession of new Member States and the deepening of the EU in parallel; underlines the importance of financial instruments, such as the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance III, in order to strengthen the partnership between the EU and candidate countries; calls for the development of a coherent strategy for the gradual integration of all candidate countries, including into sectoral policies and as observers in the various institutions of the Union; remains deeply concerned about reports that the Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement is deliberately seeking to circumvent and undermine the centrality of democratic and rule of law reforms in EU accession countries; urges the Commission to initiate an independent and impartial investigation into whether the conduct displayed and the policies furthered by the Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement constitute a breach of the Code of Conduct for the Members of the Commission and of the Commissioner’s obligations under the Treaties;

Added:62. Notes the strategic importance of the Western Balkans in today’s geopolitical context, as well as for the security and stability of the EU as a whole; reiterates the need for greater European presence and visibility in the region in order to divert foreign malign influences and their hybrid activities;

Added:63. Condemns the terrorist attack carried out on 24 September 2023 against Kosovo Police officers in Banjska in the north of the Republic of Kosovo, and other provocations; re-emphasises its position as adopted in its resolution of 19 October 2023; urges all sides, in this context, to work to de-escalate the situation and avoid any rhetoric or action that could lead to further tensions; is closely following the ongoing investigations and reiterates that the perpetrators responsible must be held accountable and face justice; calls on the Commission and the Council to take measures against the Serbian Government if investigations reveal that the Serbian State was directly involved in the aforementioned attack or the violent attacks that took place in the north of Kosovo in May 2023, or if the Serbian authorities are unwilling to cooperate fully;

Added:64. Supports the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia and the development of the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina; calls on Kosovo and Serbia to engage in the Dialogue in good faith and in the spirit of compromise to achieve a comprehensive, legally binding agreement on the normalisation of their relations, based on mutual recognition, in accordance with international law and without further delay; recalls that failure to advance on the normalisation of relations would negatively impact the EU integration of both countries; regrets the restrictive measures imposed by the Council against Kosovo and calls for their immediate lifting; calls for the EU to adopt a balanced approach to the mediation between the parties in order to overcome the current stalemate; recalls that the failure of the Dialogue would also have consequences for the EU’s role as a credible foreign policy player;

Added:65. Welcomes the Commission’s recommendation to the Council to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova; calls on the Council to adopt the negotiation framework once Ukraine and Moldova have advanced on pending laws on anti-corruption and the verification of assets and undertaken further steps on de-oligarchisation; takes positive note of the recommendation to also open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria is achieved; welcomes Kosovo’s application for EU membership and asks the Commission to respond to it; recalls that Kosovo’s bid to be considered a candidate country will be assessed on the basis of its own merits and of its success in meeting the Copenhagen criteria for EU membership; welcomes, however, the lifting of visa requirements for Kosovo citizens, which will enter into force no later than January 2024;