Munich, 05/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - The Federal Committee of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), chaired by Jo Leinen, has adopted its post-Nice strategy, launching an appeal to the European Parliament and national parliaments for them to "ask for guarantees as regards the opening of a constituent process before they deliver their verdict on the Treaty of Nice".
The UEF, for its part, has decided to: - participate actively in the debate on the future of the EU, promoting the establishment of a European Federation; - carry on and intensify their joint transnational campaign "For a European Constitution" which was launched in March 1998, with the new title "For a European Federal Constitution"; - ask the European Council in Laeken to mandate a "European Constituent Assembly", composed of representatives with the double legitimacy of the citizens and candidate countries, to draft a European Constitution by end-2003, so that it could then become the central point of the European elections campaign in 2004 and be submitted, the same day, to the citizens' vote in all countries" members of the EU; - prepare and encourage the creation of "Friends of a European Constitution" committees, at European and national level, in view of the Declaration of Laeken and of a joint action of trade unions, various NGOs and European Federalist organisations. The UEF also calls on the political parties to agree on European lists of candidates for the 2004 elections and to nominate a European head of list to be proposed as President of the European Commission.
The meeting of the Federal Committee of the UEF was preceded, in Munich, by a conference organised by the UEF and the Young European Federalists (JEF). Regarding the debate on establishing a "core" of countries supporting the idea of a European federation, European JEF President Paolo Vacca stated that "Europe has proceeded by actions of some governments attracting the others". As for Jo Leinen, he said that "use should be made of the enhanced cooperation provisions within the Treaties; should certain governments block integration, however, ways of proceeding further could be found even outside the Treaties", he warned.