Brussels / Berlin, 27/05/2002 (Agence Europe) - Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, Chairman of the European Convention, held a working dinner in London on 27 May with British Prime Minister Tony Blair during which he mainly spoke of the state of progress of the Convention's work (on the last plenary, see EUROPE of 24 May, p.4, and 25 May, pages 5 and 6). The meeting took place at the invitation of Tony Blair, states a press release issued by VGE's spokesman's service (Ed.: Mr Giscard d'Estaing has already made other visits of this kind, without, however, undertaking a systematic tour of the European Union capitals).
Furthermore, Mr Giscard d'Estaing will be in Madrid on 30 May at the invitation of Spanish Prime Minister and European Council President José Maria Aznar. According to a press release, he will hold an exchange of views with Mr Aznar as a preliminary to the European Council of Seville on 21 and 22 June (Ed.: during which Valéry Giscard d'Estaing should make a first report on the state of progress of the work of the Convention).
On the subject of the future of Europe, Secretary to the Foreign Office Jack Straw delivered a speech in Berlin, on 27 May, in which he warned Europe should not become a "super State", but should remain "a Europe united across the old divide by common values and common identities". "The original mission for Europe remains valid. But it is no longer enough. We need to offer our electorates new arguments, not least because the EU is now facing a test of leadership and legitimacy", said Mr Straw. He insisted on the need to "address voters' fears about loss of sovereignty". "This wider Union will be a unique structure", which does not correspond to "any form of political organisation which currently exists or has existed", he said. Also, noting that the European States have kept their constitutional structures and that as the EU has developed, he has not noticed any "diminution in the Italian, French or German sense of national identity as the EU has developed". He said that the European Convention provides "an important opportunity to reverse public disenchantment with the EU". The Convention must prepare the Union to face up to the challenges of enlargement, he affirmed, and, without wishing to predict the decisions taken by the European Council in December, he hoped that, in Copenhagen, "we will be able to conclude negotiations with 10 countries". He went on to add that "alongside that decision, we shall want to give new impetus to the negotiations with Bulgaria and Romania, to give further consideration to Turkey's candidacy, and to send a signal that the door remains open to new candidates". Past experience has shown that "enlargement has been of mutual benefit to new and old member states alike", stressed the Minister, saying "some worry that enlargement will put the brakes on European economic growth. Another myth. Independent studies suggest that enlargement should create up to 300,000 jobs in the EU." Regarding the "new neighbours" further East, Mr Straw recalled that he recently wrote to his EU counterparts "making the case for new policies towards Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus". He added: "I know this is a priority shared by Germany and by the incoming Danish Presidency". He went on to cite the metaphor of Pope Jean-Paul II who said "Europe has two lungs. It will never breathe easily until it uses both of them". Finally, Mr Straw, who was on his way to India and Pakistan, also stressed that London and Berlin are "working more closely than ever before on other foreign policy challenges, be it counter-terrorism, efforts to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction or NATO enlargement". Mr Straw stressed the advantages that the next EU enlargement could bring, and insisted on the need to regain the trust of European voters who, he recalled, have given their vote over recent weeks to parties that voice serious objections not only against the European Union but also against enlargement.