Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-09-22-Speech-3-008"
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"Mr President, the European Council meeting of 16 September was convened primarily in order to focus on the Union’s external relations. We also had a short scheduled discussion during lunch about the task force on economic governance, and an unscheduled discussion about the Roma situation. Allow me to address each of these in turn.
On the Middle East: the success of the Middle East peace negotiations is of strategic interest for the European Union. We adopted a specific declaration on this issue in line with our common position of December 2009. We are involved in the process via the Quartet.
Our neighbourhood, for instance, the Western Balkans and their European perspective, and the Eastern Partnership, are of the highest importance. Our reputation in the world starts with stability on our own continent. If we want to be a global player, we have to be a regional player.
From now on, we will discuss foreign policy in the European Council in this spirit. We can only be credible and strong if we are united. We showed our unity in the position of the 27 on additional sanctions on Iran, which was not self-evident, and in the very important UN resolution on the dialogue between Serbia and Kosovo, extremely important for the Western Balkans.
Besides discussing strategy and our overall approach, we also reached a conclusion on two specific issues: South Korea and Pakistan. We thereby showed immediately that the European Union can deliver on issues of huge strategic interest.
The free trade agreement with South Korea is an issue of great external importance. It concerns a vital relationship with our eighth largest trading partner and, beyond that, with the whole of the Asian economy. It has been close to agreement for three years and we are delivering it now. It will save European exporters EUR 1.6 billion in costs annually, so this is good news for our export industries and therefore for jobs and growth in Europe.
On Pakistan, we want to give maximum support to this country after it was so severely struck by devastating floods. More aid and more trade; we want Pakistan to recover now and to develop economically. We will grant significantly increased market access. Catherine Ashton helped us to reach agreement on this important declaration.
Second point: the task force. During the European Council lunch, we talked about the economy, the basis to gain political clout. In the first half of the year, the European Council had to involve itself in pressing economic issues. Our economies are in better shape now, but the work is not over yet.
During the lunch, I briefed my colleagues on the progress in the task force on economic governance. I did it yesterday here in the Parliament. All Heads of State or Government want to continue the work and to keep the momentum.
We have a large consensus on some of the most important issues, like the macro-economic surveillance framework. This will monitor and correct imbalances, risks of bubbles, and divergences in competitiveness. There is also agreement on strengthening national fiscal frameworks, on enshrining European budget rules in national legislation and on the principle of what has been called the European Semester. We also made progress on sanctions, even if more work is needed. As I explained in detail to a meeting with seven of your committee chairs and the leaders of your groups yesterday, this amounts to a strengthening of the economic pillar of our Economic and Monetary Union.
Although some have claimed that our work on this is slow, we have in fact covered an enormous amount of ground in a very short time. Compared to negotiations establishing the Stability and Growth Pact in 1997 and its revision in 2005, we are proceeding very quickly, despite the complexity of the issues. I will submit a draft of the global report to the task force on 27 September. We will finalise the discussions in the middle of October so that the European Council can reach a conclusion at its meeting of 28 and 29 October. The Commission intends to present legislative proposals by the end of September in line with its right of initiative – proposals which will, of course, come before your Parliament for consideration and adoption under the legislative procedures.
First, regarding foreign affairs. When I took office eight months ago, while visiting our capitals, I noticed a degree of frustration following the Copenhagen Summit. There was a perception that the European Union was sidelined. Our economic outlook was not good, whereas other economies in the world were growing rapidly. Moreover, we started to realise how the economic strength of emerging countries is being transformed into real political power. The G20, although created at the instigation of the European Union, is also a sign of this trend, as is the debate about representation in the International Monetary Fund. This affects us: new players do not always share our interests and our world views.
Those proposals by the Commission may positively contribute to keeping the momentum. This spring, we won the battle of the euro. I am confident that next month, we will draw the final right lessons from this crisis.
Third topic: the Roma. During lunch, we discussed a topic that interests you particularly. Around the table there was consensus on five points, which was not interpreted as a formal Council conclusion.
One, a Member State has the right and the duty to take action to uphold the rule of law within its territory. Two, the Commission has the right, and indeed the duty, to ensure compliance with Union law by Member States and has the right, and indeed the duty, to conduct investigations. Three, we took note of the declaration that the Commission President made on the eve of the European Council. Four, respect is the essential rule in relations between the Member States and the Commission. Five, in a future meeting of the European Council, we will discuss the issue of integration of the Roma.
The prohibition of all forms of discrimination based on nationality or ethnicity is the founding principle of the European Union. Respect for human dignity is one of our core values.
Meetings of the European Council should not be considered as summits but as regular – even routine – meetings of a Union institution. Indeed, allow me to emphasise, at this time of renewed debate in your Parliament about the Community method, that the European Council is an institution of our Union, not another summit in the manner of the G8 and the G20. It is embedded in the institutional framework of the Union but it brings to the Union inputs from the highest political level in the Member States and it gives the Member States a sense of ownership and participation in the Union and reinforces their commitment to its success.
It comprises not only the Heads of State or Government but also the President of the European Commission and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs. It is often attended by the President of the European Central Bank. Since the Lisbon Treaty, it is being chaired by someone who is not simultaneously representing one of the Member States but who must work both inside the European Council and in close cooperation with the other institutions to find agreements in the general European interest. That is why I am investing time and energy in maintaining regular contacts with the Presidents of other institutions, not least the President of the Commission, the rotating Council Presidency, the Central Bank, the Euro Group and, of course, yourself, Mr President, along with leaders of the political groups and chairs of the parliamentary committees, well beyond what is provided for in the treaty.
We do indeed work in the general European interest. The efforts made by all European institutions over the last months have started to produce results. Our economies are recovering at an unexpected pace. Confidence is coming back, slowly but surely. I thank the European Parliament for its cooperation in restoring confidence through the legislation on financial surveillance.
Many Member States are engaged in reform programmes. I pay tribute to those national governments who are taking courageous measures in very difficult political circumstances. In most of our Member States, the crisis is not over, in particular, not on the employment front, although there is improvement. We are in better shape now than before the summer. A lot of work remains to be done. Dear colleagues, we will do it.
The Lisbon Treaty requires the European Council to define the Union’s strategic interests and give strategic direction to the work of other institutions. I am glad the Heads of State or Government all agreed to take this up and deepen their involvement in the Union’s foreign policy. They want more ownership by the European Council. They want to assume their responsibilities as members of this Union institution.
What did we discuss? Well, it seemed urgent to me to address our strategic partnerships first. The issue was to link general objectives to concrete means, to make progress on the ground. We therefore briefly talked about how to make the best use of the Lisbon Treaty, with the new External Action Service. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Parliament for its work in securing agreement on this.
How can we make sure that what is done in Brussels and in the capitals is going in the same direction? How can we coordinate better between the different actors in Brussels? How can we bring together the different aspects of our relationship with partners – for instance, during summits – in areas such as the economy, climate, values and security?
The proof of the pudding is in the eating. How do we deal with our partners, one to one? We set priorities on a number of pressing matters. Our key messages for summits with third countries have to be underpinned by some specific negotiations and trade-offs. I retain from the discussion in the European Council the following other points:
First, this is the beginning of a process. Second, our key messages should be mandated by the European Council, prepared and implemented by the Foreign Affairs Council, the Commission and the High Representative, just as we are already preparing the G20 meetings in the European Council. My third point is that, with our partners, ‘reciprocity’ is a key word. We can also speak about ‘identifying mutual interests’. The general feeling is that this is not the case yet. We all insist on deliverables and leverage. We must turn objectives into concrete results. We have strategic partners but we need more strategy.
We have developed ideas on how to position ourselves vis-à-vis China and where to fine-tune them further. Thanks to the European Council discussion, when the President of the Commission and I meet the Chinese Prime Minister in Brussels two weeks from now, we will not speak just for ‘Brussels’. We can also speak on behalf of the 27.
We touched upon other upcoming meetings as well: the G20 summit in Seoul and the EU-US summit, both to take place in November, both crucial for global economic prospects. We will further prepare these meetings at the European Council of 28 and 29 October. The French President, as incoming chair, outlined some of his ideas for the G20 in 2011. He received our full support for creating a new dynamic for the G8/G20, underlining that they should become a process, not just an event."@en1
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