10/03/2010: Annual Report on EU Common Foreign and Security Policy: after Lisbon, a stronger role for the European Parliament. Gabriele Albertini MEP For the first time after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Parliament today adopted its annual assessment of EU activities in the area of foreign and security policy. The Report outlines future priorities underlining that a new, more coherent and more strategic approach is needed if the EU wants to act as a global player. "EU foreign and security policy has to become more ambitious and the European Parliament must be adequately involved in this process in line with its newly-acquired 'Lisbon' powers. With this objective, our Assembly has to foster a regular, systematic and effective relationship with the new Vice-President/High Representative, who is subject to a collective vote of consent by the European Parliament", said Gabriele Albertini MEP, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. "Several challenges anticipate a crucial role for us in the coming months: the setting-up of the new European External Action Service (EEAS) is of the utmost importance for EU foreign policy and the European Parliament has to play its role in terms of democratic and budgetary scrutiny. The European External Action Service has to be the EU's operational instrument to implement its foreign policy and enough funds have to be allocated from the EU budget to meet this objective", said Albertini. "The European Parliament should establish a continuous dialogue with the Council and the Commission at all levels to develop the best formulation, financing, implementation and monitoring of the EU External Action Service." Albertini also explained that common European interests have to be at the centre of the EU's external actions. According to this goal, the Vice-President/High Representative should re-launch the development of collective strategic thinking with the objective of producing a coherent EU foreign policy strategy which would be the framework for the common foreign and security policy. "The EU needs to be more determined if we want to successfully tackle several strategic priorities, to which the European Parliament can make essential contributions, such as a common European external energy policy, stability in the Western Balkans, the transatlantic partnership as the cornerstone of the EU's external actions, strengthening global stability and security and political and economic cooperation with the EU's neighbouring countries", concluded Albertini. For further information: Gabriele Albertini MEP, Tel: +33-3-88-175366 Francesco Frapiccini, EPP Group Press & Communications Service, Tel: +32-473-941652 Notes to Editors: The EPP Group is by far the largest political group in the European Parliament with 265 Members.