Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1438074
8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 DECEMBER 2021 INTERVIEW The EU is not in a position to solve As an MEP, you have often voiced scepticism regarding whether the European Parlia- ment should involve itself in the internal issues of third-party countries. Last month, for in- stance, you abstained on a res- olution about the Tunisian situ- ation. Yet it remains a fact that the EP often passes such res- olutions: recent examples in- clude Russia and Syria. Do you think that there will be more discussion, in future, regarding a Common Foreign Policy for the European Union? First of all, in a Parliament, there cannot be any limita- tions on what can, or cannot, be 'discussed'. The word par- liament itself means precisely that: 'talking'. So parliaments can 'talk' about anything they like, really. What might happen afterwards, though, is that in- dividuals State may reply: "OK, now that you've done your talking… I'm going to carry on like before". On the other hand, however: as an MEP, no, I don't really agree that the European Par- liament should be wading into matters that are not within its own competence; nor, for that matter, that we MEPS – in all our wisdom (or so we think) – should be 'judging' all other countries, from here…. very of- ten, in purely partisan ways. I also believe – and this some- thing we are often told by rep- resentatives of non-EU States – that, even though EP reso- lutions are not in themselves legally binding… when the Eu- ropean Parliament does pass a resolution against this or that country, it will have an 'echo': in the sense that the resolution will project a certain 'senti- ment', onto the country con- cerned. We see this even in Malta: every time the European Parlia- ment passes a resolution about Malta, there is always a lot of discussion about it in the press, and among the general public. And the same thing happens in other countries: Tunisia, Paki- stan, Azerbaijan… you name it. Now: is the European Union going to involve itself even more, in foreign policy issues? In reality, that is already hap- pening. There are efforts cur- rently under way - support- ed by many MEPs, and also a number of member states – for what is referred to as a 'deep- ening' [approfondiment] of the European Union's foreign poli- cy: to give it more more 'bite'; more cohesion… more unity, if you like; and also, of the EU's common defence and securi- ty strategy. Because for many MEPS, and many EU State rep- resentatives, those two issues go hand-in-glove. So these efforts are ongoing, even as we speak. For example, there is already an EU High Representative who is involved in foreign affairs; and who al- so presides over – in his other capacity, as Vice President of the European Commission – all the meetings of EU Foreign Affairs Ministers. I, however, remain one of those sceptics who argue that - especially for a small, neutral country like Malta - we have to be extra-careful, when it comes to automatically align- ing ourselves with foreign pol- icy positions that, very often, are decided at the centre of Eu- rope: that is, by the larger, and longer-established EU member states, such as France, Germa- ny, and others. Because, no matter what we like to think about ourselves: the fact remains that we do not gravitate in the same 'inner cir- cles', as those countries do… A few weeks ago, you voted in favour of a resolution con- demning certain restrictions, imposed by the government of Poland, on access to abortion. In your explanation, you also mentioned that you had revised your own opinions on that sub- ject. Can you explain what your actual position on abortion is today? Let's start with this. For some time, I was the leader of the Labour Party: which, as far as I know, hasn't changed its po- sition on abortion since that time. Now as then, Labour does not agree with the introduction of abortion in Malta. And this was a position I fully support- ed, at the time. Over the years, however, you start seeing and hearing about all the real problems that are actually faced by people on the ground; and they start fitting into a broader picture of how our society in general is evolv- ing. As for my own views: they are in the process of changing, yes. In the sense that: there are certain women's rights, which are recognized by all the mod- ern world – and by that, I mean specifically by all European countries – that I think must be respected. There are also certain needs, or necessities, that cannot be ignored. Above all, however: while we have to respect everybody's opinion… we also have to re- spect everybody's rights. I am certainly not one of those who strongly condemns anyone who is in favour of abortion; but I don't condemn those who are against it, either. On the other hand, with the same sense of tolerance I find myself leaning towards a posi- tion where I would be in favour of introducing abortion, within certain regulatory limitations. But this is only a personal opinion of mine, and does not reflect the position of my party. Regarding the Poland resolu- tion, however: that was a case where the country had already introduced abortion – thereby granting that right to women - but then, chose to remove it. That is something I could not, and cannot ever agree with: not just with regard to Poland. There was another similar res- olution concerning the USA: in much the same way as Poland, the state of Texas also decid- ed to change its abortion laws, effectively making it almost impossible for abortion to be practiced there. In both cases, I felt that a right which had been granted to women through democrat- ic means, was simply taken away from them: for reasons that, in both cases, were ulti- mately down to partisan pol- Former Prime Minister (now MEP) ALFRED SANT admits that his own opinions about certain issues – abortion, in particular – may have changed, over the years. But he remains as sceptical as ever, regarding the European Union he once campaigned against joining: arguing that it lacks the structural tools to face today's challenges Nicole Meilak nmeilak@mediatoday.com.mt