At the informal General Affairs meeting in Murcia, Spain, on Thursday 28 September, European ministers discussed the EU’s strategic autonomy and took note of the declaration to be adopted on 6 October at the informal meeting of European heads of state or government (see EUROPE 13259/1).
Since the adoption of the Strategic Agenda in June 2019 and subsequent events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Union’s political priorities and strategic action plan have been redefined.
“We have no time to rest on our laurels”, declared the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, at the end of the informal meeting.
“We need to redouble our efforts to make Europe more economically resilient, competitive and sustainable, and to ensure that our citizens can benefit from the social market economy we have created across Europe”.
Defence, resilience and competitiveness
At the Granada meeting, the leaders are expected to agree on developing the European defence technological and industrial base, strengthening military mobility throughout the EU and combating cyber and hybrid threats.
They will also discuss the EU’s resilience and competitiveness in order to ensure the sustainability of the economic model and address vulnerabilities in a situation of increasing climate risks and geopolitical tensions.
“When we talk about strategic autonomy, we're not talking about self-sufficiency, but about greater resilience. We need to be stronger to face up to any crisis or challenge that arises”, said Portugal’s Secretary of State for European Affairs, Tiago Antunes.
There is also talk of increasing energy sovereignty and reducing external dependence in other areas, while paying particular attention to areas where the EU already has a competitive advantage or can become a forerunner.
“It’s really a question of consolidating our economic power (...), having a defence policy, an energy policy and an industrial policy that will make us a real world power and enable us to prosper in this new world”, emphasised the French Minister of State for Europe, Laurence Boone.
In terms of international engagement, the EU plans to work more closely with partners in all regions of the world to strengthen and diversify supply chains, while promoting sustainable development to meet the ‘net-zero’ objective.
Migration and enlargement
With the EU facing migration challenges (see other news), leaders are expected to agree on the need to step up the implementation and adoption of a comprehensive approach combining increased external action and more effective control of external borders.
Finally, the EU should prepare for enlargement of the Union (see other news), which could strengthen European sovereignty and constitute a geostrategic investment. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)