Should a country loosen its commitment to human rights and democracy, the EU should strengthen its cooperation with non-state actors and local authorities and use forms of aid that provide the poor with the support they need.

Notes that the UNHRC has the potential to develop into a valuable framework for the European Union's multilateral human rights efforts; notes, with concern, the fact that during the last year of activities that new body has not proved its credibility but stresses once again the crucial role of the UNHRC within the overall UN architecture; trusts that the implementation of the Universal Periodic Review mechanism will achieve the first concrete results and improvements; calls on the Council and the Commission closely to monitor this process so as to ensure that it implements United Nations General Assembly Resolution 60/251 of 15 March ...[+++]2006 on the UNHRC, which is the starting point for the universal periodic review, based on objective and reliable information, of the fulfilment by each State of its human rights obligations and commitments in a manner which ensures universality of coverage and equal treatment with respect to all States; calls on the Council to consult Parliament on this matter;

They shall comply with the agreements concluded by the Community and its Member States with the partner countries and respect commitments under multilateral agreements and international conventions to which they are parties, including commitments on human rights, democracy and good governance.

46. Welcomes the fact that the Council and the Commission have introduced human rights, democracy, the rule of law and good governance concerns with specific benchmarks in all National Action Plans drawn up in the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP); accepts that, whilst the strength of the Action Plans is that they constitute a binding commitment, this also represent their weakness, because they must be negotiated with the partner country; urges the Council therefore to hold such countries to their commitments and to consider measures to be taken in the event that they do not fulfil them within an agreed timeline; draws specific attention ...[+++]to the weakness of human rights engagements in this respect with Morocco and the Western Sahara, Tunisia, Syria, Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Algeria and Egypt, the Action Plans concerning the latter two countries still being under negotiation; looks forward to examining the reports on the first year of implementation of the first seven action plans and the priorities for the ENP set for 2006; calls, in this spirit, for the setting-up of sub-committees on human rights dealing with, inter alia , individual cases so as to further improve the human rights dialogue with all partner countries;

46. Welcomes that Council and Commission have introduced human rights, democracy, the rule of law and good governance concerns with specific benchmarks in all National Action Plans drawn up in the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP); accepts that the strength of the Action Plans is that they constitute a binding commitment and that this also represent their weakness, because they must be negotiated with the partner country; urges the Council therefore to hold such countries to their commitments and to consider measures to be taken in the event that they do not fulfil them within an agreed timeline; draws specific attention ...[+++]to the weakness of human rights engagements in this respect with Morocco and the Western Sahara, Tunisia, Syria, Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Algeria and Egypt, the Action Plans of the latter two countries still being under negotiation, looks forward to examining the reports on the first year of implementation of the first seven action plans and the priorities for the ENP set for 2006; calls, in this spirit, on the setting up of sub-committees on Human rights dealing with among others individual cases so as to further improve the human rights dialogue with all partner countries;

Through the Common Strategy on Russia, approved by the European Union in 1999 with a view to consolidating democracy and the rule of law in Russia, the Commission will support Russia's efforts to honour its human rights commitments, particularly vis-à-vis international bodies such as the Council of Europe, the United Nations and the OSCE.