Gothenburg, 15/06/2001 (Agence Europe) - The works of the European Council, which unfolded on 15 and 16 June under the Presidency of Goran Persson have been marked, on Friday, by an intense discussion over the European Union enlargement process. The general feeling, after the Irish referendum on the Treaty of Nice, was that it is necessary to clearly reaffirm that EU enlargement process is irreversible, said the President of the General Affairs Council Anna Lindh to the press, when noting that the Summit had brought "great support" to the desire of the Presidency to indicate, in its Gothenburg conclusions, a "more precise timetable" on future accessions. Great does not mean unanimous, admitted the Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs when answering questions. It is too early to say what will be the conclusions, tomorrow, she added; however, the opposition from several Member States to the writing down of a date in the Presidency conclusions, leave conclusions working to strengthen the political message sent to the candidate countries (see below).
As for the exchange of views with the Irish Prime Minister over the consequences of the rejection of the Treaty of Nice during the referendum on 7 June, the conclusion of the participants in the summit, as summarised by Mr Persson, is that it is necessary to give the Irish time to think, before they can make proposals on possible ways in which to overcome this impasse. The Irish government has not yet given any indications over what it is considering doing, but it will in no way want to organise a new referendum before the general elections expected in June 2002 at the latest. The conclusions that must be adopted on Saturday by the European Council on this issue will indicate that, despite the Irish "no", there cannot be a renegotiation of the Treaty of Nice, and that the enlargement process continues. Which is what was asserted, among others, by Chancellor Schröder, who also underlined that the result of the Irish referendum confirms the need for greater transparency and clarity in Europe: the debate over the future of Europe, he said must in particular allow to clarify what is decided in Brussels and what must remain the prerogative of the Member States.
In Gothenburg, the debate over the future of Europe is relatively general and mainly covered procedures (on this issue, see EUROPE of 14 June, p.5 for main conclusions of Swedish Presidency). Basically, in an interview published on Friday by the Financial Times, Chancellor Schröder said that he did not expect for the proposals from the German Social Democratic Party on the future of Europe to be accepted as such, notably those on the establishment of the second Chamber (which would be the Council).
This European Council was marked by the presence of a new Head of Government, the Italian Silvio Berlusconi, accompanied by his Ministers for Foreign Affairs Renato Ruggiero and Giulio Tremanti. It was also marked (as had been the case for the Nice Summit) with anti-globalisation demonstrations that turned violent, the peaceful elements being overcome, this time to, by a certain number of "rioters".
What should have been the main theme of the summit sustainable development, was only dealt with in the late afternoon. The main aim was to integrate this dimension into the Lisbon process, which extended into Stockholm, by adding a development compatible with the environment and the economic and social dimensions of the process (see other page concerning "non-paper" from Swedish Presidency, which the Summit should enshrine on Saturday in its conclusions).
In the evening, the High Representative for CFSP, Javier Solana, presented his report on the role of the Middle East peace process, a report whose main message is the existence of an "international coalition for peace" in which Europe, the United States and the countries most engaged in the region take part, as well as the United Nations Secretary General (see below with regards to meeting between Europeans and President Bush).
Irish "no" to Nice: Bertie Ahern underlines need for "extended period for thought", notably thanks to
new national forum for Europe - Solemn undertaking in favour of enlargement.
On Friday morning, the Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, in a declaration to his colleagues on the rejection of the Treaty of Nice by the Irish during the referendum on 7 June, asserted that his government had "constantly" told public opinion that the ratification of the Treaty of Nice was necessary for enlargement (which is a "historic duty" and a "great opportunity"), and that the changes that the Treaty introduced, "which was a compromise resulting from a hard battle, in no way affected Ireland's fundamental interests and did not threaten its values". The Taoiseach made a point of repeating that this "no" should absolutely not be interpreted as a rejection of enlargement and that the leaders of the rejection campaign had "made a point of saying that they supported enlargement". And "this has been repeated since", he added, noting that it was what his foreign minister had done in Luxembourg on Monday. "Today, I would like to formally renew this commitment", he stated. Mr. Ahern, who asked for the "backing" of the other Member States now that it was "necessary to reflect carefully and patiently" on how to move forward, stipulated: "I believe it would be premature on my part to begin to discuss today the specific way the difficult situation in which we find ourselves may be resolved (…) We really do need, at national level, a prolonged period of reflection. I have announced the setting up of a National Forum on Europe. I hope that this will allow for a broader and systematic debate on the European Union and its future direction, that has been possible thus far. There are also important questions to consider concerning the way in which our national parliament controls EU affairs". At a more general level, Mr. Ahern considered that the outcome of the referendum of 7 June confirmed the existence, "unfortunately", of "a widespread feeling among citizens of being disconnected from the Union's institutions" and "frustration faced with what is seen at time as a lack of clarity, transparency and the ability to act" on the part of the Union. We have a real and urgent need to concentrate, now, on the way in which to ensure the functioning of the Union in a more significant manner for our citizens and to enhance the democratic responsibility. Personally, if feel this strongly. Mr Ahern, who recalled that this 7 June referendum was the fifth in Ireland since its accession to the EU in 1972 (the others covered its accession, the Single European Act and the Maastricht and Amsterdam Treaties), noted that all these consultations where passed "easily, even if the winning a margin progressively fell". He concluded: I know that it is easier to diagnose the problem than to prescribe widely acceptable remedies. I also know that there are many erroneous views and misunderstandings that, precisely, shape the peoples' perceptions of the Union. However, it is crucial that this dimension be at the forefront of our thought throughout our imminent debate over the future of the Union.
Broad Economic Guidelines: European Council approved BEPG for 2001
The EU 15 Finance Ministers took part, with the Heads of State and Government, in the works of the European summit during the afternoon and, following a first round of talks, the European Council approved the proposals for the Ecofin Council for the Broad economic Policy Guidelines for 2001 (see EUROPE of 7 June, p.12). The Swedish Presidency notes in its conclusions that the message from the summit was clear: The Member States must maintain the heading printed in their economic policy, notably in view of solid public finances and containing inflation. If necessary, it will be necessary to allow the use of the margin permitting the use of automatic stabilisers, in order to counter a possible new weakening of the EU economy asserted the Presidency.
During his press conference with the president of the Ecofin council, Bosse Ringholm, the Commissioner for Economy and Finance, Pedro Solbes, recalled that, in certain cases recourse to stabilisers should be permitted, but that this instrument "ought not to be used" in countries where the rate of debt is still too high. When questions were put to him on countries that could use the stabilisers, he did not wish to give an answer but nonetheless said that, in three countries (Belgium, Italy and Greece), the debt was close to 100% of GNP. Neither did Mr Solbes reply to questions on the worrying situation of the Italian deficit.
On the tax package, the Presidency conclusions simply point out that the European Council expressed satisfaction for progress obtained and measures taken so that the work on this subject may be completed by the end of 2002. The European Council gives its assurance that it will closely follow progress made. Furthermore, the European Council briefly discussed the Single Sky issue, stressing that work in this connection must resume as soon as possible. He spoke along the same lines with regard to retirement pensions.
In answer to questions on the proposal by his German counterpart Mr Eichel to introduce a European tax, Mr Ringholm repeated that, Sweden believes national parliaments must take decisions on this.
The Ecofin Council had held a brief meeting on Friday evening to formally approve the BEPG.