Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday marked 70 years since the Schuman Declaration. It was a time when states were struggling to rebuild after the brutal destruction of the Second World War. With the horrors of that war still fresh in the minds of so many, the core of the declaration presented a strong determination to prevent another war. It aimed to "make war between the historic rivals [...] 'not merely unthinkable, but materially impossible'". This declaration set in place a vision for a new Europe, one with co-operation at its core. When we look at the aims and values of the EU today, we can see the potential of this community. It is important to acknowledge and commend the great social advances made across the EU member states in the last 70 years.

I am, however, concerned that the EU has drifted dangerously far from its values and aims. The EU's aims in the wider world are clearly defined. These include contributing "to peace, security, the sustainable development of the Earth [...] strict observance of [...] international law" and to "solidarity and mutual respect among peoples, free and fair trade, eradication of poverty and the protection of human rights [...]", which of course sounds great. The reality of the actions of the EU and its member states paints a different picture. The military-industrial complex in the EU has silently developed into one of the largest in the world, where making profits by EU states has clearly taken precedence over the aims of the EU worldwide. EU policy on arms trade clearly states that "Member States are determined to prevent the export of military technology and equipment which might be used for internal repression or international aggression or contribute to regional instability". It has been clearly documented, however, that arms and military equipment produced in Europe and sold outside the EU have been used in brutal war crimes and caused forced displacement and migration.

We only have to look at Saudi Arabia and Israel as prime examples. The Saudi Arabian Government is one of the biggest clients for European arms, with the EU arms purchased frequently ending up in war-torn regions. While MEPs voted for an EU-wide arms embargo against Saudi Arabia because of its horrific crimes in Yemen, it was disappointing that the vote did not compel EU member states to act. It was merely symbolic. This symbolic act made little or no difference to the thousands of Yemeni men, women and children killed or maimed by weapons supplied by EU member state governments.

I have raised the subject of the crimes of apartheid Israel here on many occasions. What many of us might not realise, though, are the massive amounts of money being made by EU states when arming Israel. Between 2015 and 2020, Germany exported more than €1 billion worth of arms to Israel. Despite countless international human rights groups documenting Israeli war crimes and acts of apartheid, the EU stayed silent while EU member states made large profits selling weapons to these rogue states. We urgently need the EU to be pulled back onto the track of its original aims and values, namely, peace, justice and the protection of human rights.

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