Monday Council will prepare Nice Summit (ESDP, other reports for Summits attention)

Brussels, 01/12/2000 (Agence Europe) - The General Affairs Council that will be held next Monday in Brussels (as of 930am) under the Presidency of Hubert Védrine will mainly be dedicated to the preparation of the European Council in Nice, in particular with regards to the progress achieved in terms of European Security and Defence Policy. (For the other aspects of the Council, see other article).

Thus the Council must finalise a report by the Presidency on ESDP for the attention of the European Council in Nice, including in particular a mandate for the following Presidencies on the work to be done in this field. Furthermore, the Council approved a series of documents to be annexed to this report, namely:

• Reports on the creation of permanent ESDP structures within the EU Council (Political and Security Committee, Military Committee, European staff headquarters, which will replace the interim bodies) and on their functions and objectives;
• A text on the assessment mechanism for military capabilities that the Council on 20 November had decided upon the establishment (see EUROPE of 20/21 November, pages 3 and 4);
• A text on the permanent arrangements for EU/NATO consultations in this matter;
• A text on the arrangements in this field between the EU and the European NATO allies that are not members of the EU Turkey, Norway, Iceland, Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland) and the other candidate countries.

Staying in the field of Foreign, Security and Defence Policy, the Council will also cover:

• A contribution by Javier Solana, EU Council Secretary General and High Representative for CFSP, on a reference framework for the procedures to be applied by the EU for crisis management;
• A report by Mr Solana and the European Commission making recommendations on the ways to make the EU action in terms of conflict prevention more coherent.

Furthermore, the Presidency will give indications on the organisation of works in Nice (which, let us recall, start on 7 December with a summit of the European conference gathering together the EU and accession candidate countries). As usual, several reports will be submitted to the European Council, covering in particular social affairs and employment (see EUROPE of 29 November, pages 7 and 8), innovation, knowledge, economy and finances, food safety, the environment and the specificity of sport.