text_body: --- DIVISION TITLE ---
  
  Defence Policy - NATO and Europe
  
  --- MOTION EFFECT ---
  
  <p>Those voting No rejected the motion before Parliament, which read:</p>
  
  <blockquote>This House believes in the importance of European nations' building up their military capabilities to contribute more to European and global defence and security through NATO; notes that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Security_and_Defence_Policy#NATO-ESDP_Relations">'Berlin Plus'</a> agreement provides the EU with assured access to NATO assets to plan and conduct military operations under NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, who is always a European military officer; condemns proposals for the European Union to conduct the planning and leadership of operations independent of NATO means and capabilities; further notes that this represents a threat to NATO, which was developed in the <a href="http://www.atlanticcommunity.org/Saint-Malo%20Declaration%20Text.html">1998 St. Malo Declaration</a> and would be given superiority under the draft EU constitution; and further believes that such proposals discriminate against non-EU members of NATO, decouple EU security policies from NATO and duplicate existing NATO structures and assets without increasing real military capability in any way whatsoever.</blockquote>
  
  <p>The motion was replaced by:</p>
  
  <blockquote>This House believes that NATO is, and should remain, the cornerstone of Europe's collective defence; believes in the importance of European nations building up their military capabilities to contribute more to their defence and security through NATO and the EU; welcomes the development of the European Security and Defence Policy as a part of the Common Foreign and Security Policy, including its role in undertaking operations where NATO as a whole is not engaged; welcomes the "Berlin Plus" agreement which provides the EU with assured access to NATO planning and presumed access to NATO assets and capabilities for military operations; and welcomes the success of the ESDP operation undertaken in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the continuing military operation in Macedonia and police operation in Bosnia.</blockquote>
  
  <p>which passed automatically.</p>
  --- COMMENTS AND NOTES ---
  
  (put thoughts and notes for other researchers here)
  