WRITTEN QUESTION E-1205/00 by Bart Staes (Verts/ALE) to the Council. Use of German shell bodies in a chemical attack carried out by the Turkish army.
13. 2. 2001 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 46 E/145 Will the Council now seek information from the makers of ZDFís Kennzeichen Dí programme on the use of German shell bodies in a chemical attack by the Turkish army on the Kurdish PKK movement on 11 May 1999? If not, why does the Council refuse to seek information on the use of German shell bodies in a chemical attack by the Turkish army on the Kurdish PKK movement on 11 May 1999, given that it is a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)? If so, will the Council convey to the German and Turkish governments its displeasure at this violation of the CWC? (1) OJ C 280 E, 3. 10. 2000, p. 38. (2001/C 46 E/167) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1205/00 by Bart Staes (Verts/ALE) to the Council (13 April 2000) Subject: Use of German shell bodies in a chemical attack carried out by the Turkish army In reply to Written Question E-2386/99 (1), Honourable Member have not been brought to the attention of the Councilí. the Council says that áthe sources referred to by the However, the information sources on: ü German help in building a chemical weapons laboratory in Turkey, ü the use of chemical weapons by the Turkish army against the Kurdish PKK movement, and ü the German provenance (Buck and Depyfag) of chemical shell bodies used by the Turkish army were mentioned in the introduction to the question The sources are: ü the German Ministry of Defence, ü The Kennzeichen Dí programme on the ZDF television channel, and ü research carried out by the University of Munich. Furthermore, Points 3 and 5 of Written Question E-2386/99 literally stated that the Council had been made aware or had been informed of the facts (i. e. construction of a laboratory for chemical weapons and the use of chemical weapons). 1. Will the Council now seek information from the German Ministry of Defence on the ministryís help in constructing a new military chemicals laboratory in Turkey? (a) (b) If not, why does the Council refuse to seek information from the German Ministry of Defence on the ministryís help in constructing a new military chemicals laboratory in Turkey, given that it may be a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention? If so, does the German aid in constructing a new military chemicals laboratory in Turkey conform with the CWC which obliges the signatories, including Germany, never, under any circumstances, to develop, produce, acquire in any other way, stockpile, possess or transfer directly or indirectly chemical weapons? C 46 E/146 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 13. 2. 2001 2. Will the Council now register its opposition to German aid in constructing a new military chemicals laboratory in Turkey in the light of the answers to question 1? (a) If not, what are the Councilís reasons for not registering its opposition to German aid in constructing a new military chemicals laboratory in Turkey, given that this is a violation of the CWC? (b) If so, in what way will the Council make its opposition known to the German government? (1) OJ C 280 E, 3. 10. 2000, p. 38. Joint answer to Written Questions E-1203/00, E-1204/00 and E-1205/00 (10 July 2000) All EU Member States are States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their destruction (CWC). Article VIII of the Convention established the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) áto ensure the implementation of its provisions, including those for international verification of compliance with ití. All States Parties to the CWC are members of the OPCW. This is the organisation entrusted with the verification of compliance by States Parties with the provisions of the Convention. The specific questions referred to by the Honourable Member have not been raised within the Council or the Council bodies. (2001/C 46 E/168) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1211/00 by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission (14 April 2000) Subject: Deutsche Post and the German Government The German Government has granted a legal monopoly to Deutsche Post and fixed stamp prices, resulting in Deutsche Post gaining a substantially higher income than is necessary to ensure universal service. Deutsche Post has been able to use this financial advantage to subsidise Deutsche Postís commercial parcel delivery services (putting competitors of this service at an immediate disadvantage) and also to make acquisitions throughout the EU (e. g. Deutsche Post has acquired 50 % of Securicor Distribution and has also purchased Herald International Mailings). The Commission has already indicated that the support given by the German Government to Deutsche Post seems to involve state aid. Will the Commission now state clearly whether or not this is actually the case, and if so what action the Commission intends to take to prevent this infringement of EU legislation? Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission (26 May 2000) The Commission decided on 20 July 1999 to initiate the procedure laid down in Article 88 (2) (ex Article 93) of the EC Treaty in respect of possible state aid granted to Deutsche Post AG. The procedure covers the whole range of state aid allegations concerning Deutsche Post AG: use of revenues of monopoly letter service to cover losses of parcel activities, use of such revenues for acquisitions, use of proceeds from real estate transferred to Deutsche Post AG to finance acquisitions, state guarantee for debts, and coverage of pension obligations by state