*** GIULIANO AMATO, JUDY BATT: The Long-Term Implications of EU Enlargement: The Nature of the New Border. European University Institute (Badia Fiesolana, I-50016 San Domenico di Fiesole, Italy. Fax: (39-055) 4685-770, http: //http://www.iue.it/RSC/PublicationsRDC-PP.htm ). 1999, 96 pages.
There are books -this one, for instance- one regrets not having brought to the attention of readers earlier. Amato and Batt examine the problem of enlargement to Eastern and Central Europe without blinkers and without arrogance, but with the motivating humility of an ambition to be shared rather than imposed or endured. This approach, up until now, has not always been reflected in the comments of the individuals and institutions entitled to speak on this subject on behalf of the Union and its Member States.
This work was composed in the course of six meetings, in 1998 and 1999, of a discussion group created jointly by the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies (European University Institute in Florence) and the European Commission's Forward Studies Unit. It was led by Giuliano Amato, who since that time has taken up the post of Council President in Italy, conferring an even greater political aura to the views expressed in this publication. The editors -Amato and Judy Batt (University of Birmingham), who served as rapporteur- directed the work on the basis of expert papers raising, inter alia, the question of how the Union's increasing diversity resulting from enlargement can be managed without compromising its coherence and the momentum of integration, as well as its "ability to meet its growing external responsibilities as the pivot of the new European order". This is the first balloon deflated by our thinkers: the cultural diversification resulting from enlargement is increasingly being perceived as a threat, which is symptomatic of the "wall in our heads", the mental heritage of decades of cold war... In reality, applicants from the "other" Europe should be seen as potential fresh blood, because these countries, which see the common European project -and we are not talking about the single market alone...- as the instrument enabling them to overcome their unhappy histories of marginalisation and oppression by dominant Great Powers, socio-economic stagnation, recurrent national tensions and political instability. Such a state of mind should "be exploited as a force for revitalising the EU's sense of its basic mission - to overcome historic animosities and build peace and prosperity".
A first -and highly relevant- comment followed by others equally enlightening. That our Union should wish to preserve the values that shape its political identity is only normal. Unity, however, presupposes not only tolerance of differences, but also mutual trust and the commitment to equality of treatment, which means that "current Member States cannot claim the right to prescribe and monitor the adherence of applicants and new member states to the EU's basic political values and rules without being prepared to subject themselves to the same scrutiny". After all, the Union itself suffers from a "democratic deficit" and "implementing democracy, the rule of law, human and minority rights is by no means perfect among current Member States"... For the thinkers of Florence and the Forward Studies Unit, there is no doubt: "Accelerating social and political change calls for innovation in longer-established democracies, as well as in the new democracies", including in the area of minority rights. Now there's an incitement to beat one's breast. Is it out of place? Some will doubtless think so. The report goes on to present similarly biting socio-economic considerations: the pressure that will arise from the gap between East and West should be perceived by the current Union less as a threat than as an opportunity to reform the EU economic system to enhance its competitiveness. Another incisive comment: "Political courage and leadership are required to explain to EU publics both the unavoidable costs of change, and the benefits to be gained from enlargement for the future prosperity, stability and security of Europe as a whole."
Readers will see that this work is an impressive indictment against all forms -including in relation to immigration- of "fortress", whether mental or physical. It is only through generosity and long-term vision that the Union will consolidate its coherence, moral authority and international credibility. Though this is self evident, it is better to state it clearly at every opportunity. Michel Theys
Michel Theys
*** Le processus d'élargissement de l'UE a-t-il perdu sa voie ? The Philip Morris Institute for Public Policy Research (168 rue Jospeh II, B-100 Bruxelles. Tel: (32) 022801662, fax: 2304487, admin@ pmi-inst.org). 2000, 94 pages.
No. Enlargement of the Union is "squarely on track", replies Nikolas van der Pas. And having served as Director General for Enlargement at the Commission (before the appointment of Enneko Landaburu), he knows his subject. And to those who see the Copenhagen criteria as an obstacle to early accession, he states: as was the case with the convergence criteria for EMU, these standards must give the applicant countries the courage to take difficult budgetary and macroeconomic decisions. Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, principal adviser on European integration to Poland's Prime Minister, admits that the applicant states must redouble their efforts to prepare for accession and brings to light a dimension of this process to which political authorities are attaching increasing importance: public support, in the applicant countries and current Member States alike. "Enlargement cannot be left to the elite" and the EU "must sell the benefits of enlargement to the European public", he observes, expressing a concern that has been reiterated recently on several occasions, in particular by President Prodi. Ivan Pilip, Member of the Czech Parliament, also recognises the problem of weakening public support, noting in particular that the populations of the applicant states, rather than feeling closer to the EU, "now perceive a distance" between them and the Union. Fridebert Pflüger, Chair of the Bundestag's Committee on European Affairs, sees a possible solution in the early establishment of an accession date for the "first wave" countries, but this view is not widely shared. Turkey's Foreign Minister Ismail Cem warns against the dangers facing an EU without Turkey (because it would "perpetuate a latent state of conflict" between two neighbouring Aegean Sea countries). Percy Barnevik of Investor (Sweden's biggest industrial holding company), who chairs the Round Table of European Industrialists' working party on enlargement, draws attention to the countries of the former Soviet Union, for which "we are doing almost nothing, in spite of their tremendous needs". Even if they are not candidates for accession, "we Europeans must adopt a clear strategy towards them", asserts Mr Barnevik, without going as far as raising the problem of the EU's geographical frontiers. (MG)
*** JEAN-BERNARD RAIMOND: Une étape importante pour l'élargissement de l'Union européenne. Conseil européen d'Helsinki, 10 et 11 décembre 1999. Assemblée nationale (Kiosque de l'Assemblée nationale, 4 rue Aristide-Briand, F-75007 Paris. Internet: http: //http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr ). Rapport d'information No 1995. 1999, 81 pages, FRF 20, 3.05 euros. ISBN 2-11-109010-7.
A member of the French National Assembly's Delegation for the European Union, Jean-Bernard Raimond presents a provisional but very precise assessment of the progress of negotiations under way on the forthcoming enlargement of the EU. The report begins by explaining the foundations of the pre-accession strategy with the ten Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs), Cyprus and Malta. The rapporteur also describes the progress registered since the start of the process, triggered at the Luxembourg European Council in December 1997, particularly in terms of adoption of the Community acquis by the first-wave applicants. The delegation then examines the European Commission's recommendations for the negotiating method and accession conditions, suggesting certain clarifications. These concern recognition of Turkey's applicant status and the geopolitical, institutional, financial and military implications of enlargement. (ED)
*** Towards Greater Economic Integration. Central and Eastern Europe: Trade, Investment and Assistance of the European Union. European Commission (DG 1A.03, 170 rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels. Tel: 32 022991444, fax: 022991777, http: //europa.eu.int/com/dg1A/index.htm). 1999, 63 pages.
This publication reviews ties between the EU and the CEECs, illustrated generously with figures and statistical tables.
*** CHRISTOPHE BONTE: La Suisse et l'Union européenne. Entre Espace économique européen et Accords bilatéraux. Publications Euryopa (Institut européen de l'Université de Genève, 2 rue Jean-Daniel Colladon, CH-1204 Genève. Fax: (41-22) 7057852, E-mail: houze@uni2a.unige.ch). "Articles et conférences" series, No 10-1999. 1999, 76 pages, CHF 5.
Inspired by the thinking of a great Swiss European, Denis de Rougemont, the Euryopa collection put out by the European University Institute in Geneva contributes to debate on the problems of contemporary Europe and implementation of the future broader Europe, giving precedence, inter alia, to work on Switzerland's role in European construction and federalism. With this publication, the collection gains an original academic contribution on the ins and outs of the bilateral agreements concluded between the European Union and the Confederation, approved massively by Swiss citizens in June 1999.
A research assistant at the Institut des hautes études en administration publique in Lausanne, Bonte -presently working on a doctoral dissertation on the problem of financial markets and banking secrecy in Switzerland and the process of European harmonisation- goes beyond the legal and economic aspects of these agreements to discuss their political and institutional dimensions, shedding light on the type of relations the Union is now maintaining with a third country right in its middle. After recalling the origins of the bilateral agreements in Switzerland's European policy, Christophe Bonte goes on to present a detailed analysis of the legal and institutional aspects and the material content of these accords, comparing them systematically to those concluded under the auspices of the European Economic Area. In Part Two, which is more analytical, he attempts to draw the lessons to be learned -both positive and negative- from these two types of agreements, from the Swiss point of view. Bonte notes that even though they offer "disadvantages and major weaknesses", which he describes in each case, the EEA and, even more so, bilateral agreements harbour numerous positive aspects, proving that "it is possible to benefit from the numerous advantages of the internal market without being a full member of the EU" He also demonstrates the willingness of the Fifteen to "let non-members take part in their many cooperation programmes (...) provided there is a mutual interest in doing so". All this tends to prove that the "Community dogma, which consists of claiming that participation in the internal market presupposes adoption of the entire acquis, is no longer being applied as rigidly as it used to be". These two types of agreement therefore "corroborate the assertion that they offer an original method of differentiation, without constituting an à la carte solution". After pointing out that the EEA, like bilateral agreements, "covers far more ground and leads to much higher levels of integration" than NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement), Mercosur, Asean or the customs union with Turkey, Christophe Bonte wonders, with certain central and eastern European countries in mind, how these findings might inspire other countries which, whether or not they have applied for admission, live within the geographical orbit of the Union. He has few illusions, however: these countries are not Switzerland, nor are they EFTA members. "History will no doubt not repeat itself the same way", he soberly concludes. Perhaps with a hint of pique? (MT)
*** PETER FORSTMOSER, HANS C. VON DER CRONE, ROLF H. WEBER, DIETER ZOBL (Eds.): Der Einfluss des europäischen Rechtes auf die Schweiz- Festschrift für Professor Roger Zäch zum 60. Geburtstag, Zürich 1999 ( Schulthess Verlag, Zwingliplatz 2, 8022 Zürich), 861 pages.
The Influence of European Law in Switzerland brings together a collection of articles by Swiss and German academics and attorneys, compiled as a tribute to Professor Roger Zäch for his 60th birthday. Prof. Zäch's entire career was devoted to study of the development of European law and European integration. The articles are divided into four sections, a general section, followed by others on competition, contracts and corporate law, law governing capital markets, and procedural, administrative and criminal law. Offering a wealth of diversity, some of the noteworthy titles include: "Europe's Multiple Languages and Law, or the Progress of English and Pictures", by Max Baumann; "Values in Europe - Values in Switzerland" by Daniel Thürer; "Thunder and Lightning in Brussels" by Jacques Bourgeois and Hartmut Johannes (on competition law); "The Influence of European Competition Law on Liberalisation of Switzerland's Infrastructure Market" by Patrik Ducrey; "The Influence of European Law on Administrative Law in the Cantons" by Tobias Jaag; "European Taxation Law and its Influence on the Swiss Tax System" by Markus Reich; "Convergence in European and Swiss Agricultural Law" by Paul Richli and "The EU and the Swiss Concept of Democracy" by Dietrich Schindler. (CB)
*** EUROPEAN COMMISSION: The Europe of the Fifteen: Key Figures. Edition 2000. Distributed by the Official Publications Office. "Europe on the Move" series. 1999, 46 pages. ISBN 92-828-7605-5.
This information brochure on the Union, edited in collaboration with Eurostat, the Community statistical office, presents a number of diagrams and tables on different subjects (population, standard of living, employment, economy, Europe in the world, the EU and its citizens, the Central European applicant states) offering easy comparison of Member States and between the EU and the rest of the world, especially the Union's main partners and competitors.
*** The ASSEMBLEE NATIONALE FRANCAISE. Délégation pour l'UE (Internet: http: //http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr ) has published the following, available from the "Kiosque de l'Assemblée nationale" (4 rue Aristide Briand, F-75007 Paris):
- Propositions pour la présidence française de l'Union européenne. Rapporteur: Alain Barrau. Document No 2138. 2000, 59 pages, FRF 20 (3.05 euros). This report suggests initiatives to be taken by France during its Presidency of the European Union, from 1 July to 31 December 2000. It presents a number of proposals concerning the EU institutions, growth and employment, sustainable development, the environment, judicial and police cooperation, and the Union's external relations.
- De l'OMC à l'organisation commune du marché de la banane: le respect des droits des travailleurs. Rapporteur: Camille Darsières. Document No 2178. 2000, 54 pages, FRF 20 (3.05 euros). On 12 April 1999, the common organisation of the market for bananas was once again found to be in breach of WTO rules by this organisation's dispute settlement body. Further to this decision, the Commission forwarded to the Council a proposal for a regulation introducing a tariffs-only system, which would penalise the overseas departments and territories, other Community producers and ACP producers. To take into effect such distortions of competition, the Delegation calls for maintenance of the quota system and suggests reform in the system of compensation paid to Community producers.
*** Europa/Europe. Bollati Boringhieri editore (Fondazione Istituto Gramsci, Via Portuense 95, I-00153 Roma, Tel: (39-65) 8334151/817017, fax: 8349186 Internet: http: //http://www.europaeurope.it , E-mail: redazione@europaeurope.it). No 1/2000, 187 pages. Annual subscription: ITL 120,000 lires (Italy) or 180,000 (outside of Italy).
In this issue: Russia under Putin; European defence policy; the World Trade Organisation, between old and new protectionism; the renewal of Social Democracy in Europe; the Third Way and the Dutch model; reform of the welfare state in Europe; new relations between men and women and new family situations; the political economy and pension reform; political discourse and the legitimacy of economic and social policy changes in Europe; the evolving regional presence in Community Europe; the role of European regional representations in Brussels; the role and future prospects of the Committee of the Regions; relations between the EP and the Committee of the Regions.
*** Single Market News. The Newsletter of the Internal Market DG (Unit A-4, rue de la Loi 200 (C107 5/18), B-1049 Bruxelles, Tel: (32-2) 2962294, Fax: 2960950, E-mail: Markt-A4@cec.eu.int). No 21 (May 2000), 24 pages.
In this issue: the 2000 internal market strategy review; simplification of internal market legislation; application of internal market rules to "concessions"; prospects for coming to an arrangement with the United States on data protection; final adoption of the directive on electronic commerce, dialogue with citizens and enterprises in 2000 and 2001.
*** The Federalist Debate. Via Schina 26, I-10144 Torino - Tel/fax: (39-11) 4732843, E-mail: federalist.debate@libero.it. No 1 (April 2000), 64 pages. Annual subscription: 15 euros.
In this issue: European citizenship and the Charter of Fundamental Rights; regionalist movements for a European constitution; Europe, the UN and the death penalty; Asia between federalism and power politics; African Unity: Myth or Reality?; Julius Nyerere's commitment to the federalist cause; the future of the WTO after Seattle; the euro, the dollar and the future of the International Monetary System, and more.