Brussels, 04/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - Speaking after the European Council, Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero reaffirmed his country's support for the Competitiveness Pact sponsored by Germany and France. He feels that coordination and convergence, in the eurozone in particular, are the watchwords, calling for discipline to which Spain strongly subscribes.
Regarding the situation in Egypt, Zapatero defended the need for the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to allow “a process of transition to democracy” in the country and spoke out in the strongest possible terms against any aggression and intimidation towards journalists working on the ground. He said that the declaration of the European Council, which was adopted unanimously, clearly shows that the European countries are strongly opposed to the violence which has erupted in Egypt in recent weeks. The leaders of the EU also unambiguously stressed the need to guarantee the Egyptian population a right to information, after the government cut communications. “Freedom of information is the key to all liberties and genuine democracy”, said Zapatero.
As regards innovation, he reiterated the importance of this in the framework of the 2020 strategy to stimulate the growth and competitiveness of the EU against a backdrop of globalisation. Zapatero spoke of two deadlines: the creation of a European research area in 2014, which will promote the mobility of students and researchers, amongst other things, and the creation of a single digital market in 2015. (F.G./L.C./transl.fl)