ORAL QUESTION WITH DEBATE O-0037/03
pursuant to Rule 42 of the Rules of Procedure
by Anna Terrón i Cusí, on behalf of the PSE Group, Jorge Hernández Mollar, on behalf of the
PPE-DE Group and Sarah Ludford, on behalf of the ELDR Group to the Council
Subject: EU-USA agreement on extradition and judicial cooperation in criminal matters
The United States and the European Union are about to sign an agreement on extradition and
judicial cooperation in criminal matters, based on Articles 24 and 38 of the TEU.
1. Given that this is a Union agreement which the national parliaments are unable to ratify,
does the Council intend formally to consult the European Parliament in accordance with the
democratic principle established in Article 6(1) of the TEU and the obligations deriving from
Articles 21, first subparagraph, 34(2)(c) and 38 of that Treaty?
2. It would appear that the draft agreement provides for extradition requests from the USA
being treated in the same way as surrender requests made in connection with the European
arrest warrant between EU Member States. What assurances can the Council provide as to the
existence at US level of control mechanisms equivalent to those provided for at European
level for the implementation of these rules?
3. Is this agreement compatible with the establishment of the International Criminal Court?
Will a Member State be free to decide to hand a person who is the subject of an extradition
request from the USA over to the International Criminal Court rather than sending that person
to American territory?