The Member States of the European Union intend to follow up the proposals of the Conference on the Future of Europe, bearing in mind that a large majority of these proposals can be implemented under a constant treaty.
It is important to “be as concrete and pragmatic as possible” to demonstrate to European citizens that many of the measures recommended are “already being negotiated”, said the French Minister for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, on Tuesday 21 June, at the end of the ‘General Affairs’ Council.
“There was a strong will around the Council table to put these proposals into practice”, confirmed a European diplomat. “There is work to be done to enhance what has already been adopted, to finalise what is being negotiated and to give concrete expression, through other proposals, to some of the proposals made”, the diplomat added.
An initial analysis by the Council indicated that a very large majority of the Conference’s proposals do not require institutional reform of the EU (see EUROPE 12971/25).
On Tuesday in Luxembourg, the EU Council did not officially take a position in favour of convening a Convention to revise the treaties, as the European Parliament had not made an official request in this regard, according to two European diplomatic sources. At the end of the week, the European Council is not expected to take a position either.
When they arrived at the ‘General Affairs’ Council, several countries, such as Denmark, Luxembourg, Estonia and Finland, had advocated doing as much as possible with a constant treaty, some of them citing the existence of the ‘passerelle’ clauses which make it possible to bypass the unanimous decisions of the EU27. These clauses have never been activated.
This is not the time for a “bureaucratic exercise”, said the Finnish minister, Tytti Tuppurainen. The problem, she claimed, was not the treaty, but the political will to do new things, such as fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and providing military assistance to Ukraine. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)