Brussels, 15/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - The Stockholm conference on the EU's future youth policy, held on 12-14 September, ended on a positive note, backing a more participative and more inclusive approach. That is the opinion of Tine Radinja, President of the European Youth Forum, which has long argued for a structured dialogue that would not artificially divide, but rather bring together young people with institutions and governments. “This event is a fine example of how things should be if we all want to move things forward,” he said. This view was shared by Director at DG for Education and Culture at the European Commission Pierre Mairesse, who said that the European Union was “very close to an agreement on what will be the EU youth policy for the next years”, discussions having brought consensus on the main issues and the importance of youth work in general. The Swedish objective is effectively to reach agreement by the end of the year on the new framework for cooperation 2010-2018, the outlines of which were sketched in at the last Youth Council, which met under the Czech Presidency on 11 May. With this in mind, the key messages from the various workshops at the conference will become part of the process of developing the new framework. “This conference was an example of how young people, youth organisations and officials can work together,” said Nyamko Sabuni, Swedish Minister for Youth Affairs and Equal Opportunities. (I.L./transl.rt)