Othmar Karas (PPE-DE). – (DE) Mr President, th
e Austrian People’s Party delegation voted ‘yes’ to the first part of paragraph 69, on the grounds that we see this as a process with an open outcome, whilst rejecting the second part on the grounds that it contradicts the first. In the final vote, though, despite the majority support for the second part, we voted in favour, taking the view that this r
eport does not pass judgment on the ultimate objective, but rather on the progress of negotiations to date, and that it constitutes a critic
...[+++]al and objective discussion of the European Union’s shared laws and resolutions rather than a final vote and statement.