Benita Ferrero Waldner

9th May Message from
EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner

Every May we commemorate the end of the last great European war, and out of that horrific experience the emergence of the European dream - a new form of European organization which has given us an unprecedented period of peace. This year is particularly significant, since it is 60 years since the end of that war, the longest period of peace Western Europe has ever known. And 9 May, or Europe Day, is the anniversary of the Schuman declaration, which paved the way to our current European Union and brought us that peace.

As we celebrate those with the vision and the commitment to bring about our unique community, we also reflect on the latest accomplishments of our Union and our ambitions for the future. The European Union is constantly evolving, as it seeks to keep pace with the changing demands of its citizens and the changing nature of the world around us.

The last year has seen the culmination of many years of hard work as 10 new members joined the EU. On 1 May 2004 the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia became the EU’s latest members. Contrary to many predictions, the expansion of the EU from 10 to 25 members did not result in chaos or cause the EU to implode. In fact it has been an unprecedented success, and we are already reaping the rewards. We are now a Union of 450 million citizens, we have the world’s greatest GDP, we are the largest trading block and we are the largest donor of humanitarian and development assistance in the world.

We also adopted the EU’s Constitutional Treaty, which must now be ratified by all the EU’s Member States. From my perspective this is a particularly exciting development. It will have a huge impact on our ability to speak with a coherent voice in international affairs. For a long time we have struggled to play a political role on the global stage which matches our economic clout. Now we will have the necessary tools to do so. Once the Constitution is ratified, a new position of European Minister of Foreign Affairs will be created to coordinate all aspects of the EU’s foreign policy. We will also create a new foreign service, the European External Action Service, which will work for the Minister. The EU’s delegations abroad will report to him and will have a greater role to play in ensuring that the EU sends consistent messages to its partners.

We know that the challenges we face in today’s globalized world can only be dealt with on an international level. And that if we want to project our influence effectively, pushing for multilateral responses and promoting our fundamental values, we have to bring our full political weight to bear on the international scene. A recent survey showed that an increasing majority of the world’s citizens perceive the EU as having a positive influence in world affairs and would even like to see our influence increase. This is a clear message about what the world expects from us, and now we must rise to the challenge.

The priority issues which the European Commission has adopted for this 5-year term (2004 – 2009) are solidarity, security and prosperity. This applies both within the EU and in our external relations. We will continue to be the world’s largest donor of development and humanitarian assistance; to develop our rapid response capabilities which enable us to mobilize emergency assistance (for example, in the case of the tragic Indian Ocean tsunami); and to promote economic development and our core values of democracy, human rights, good governance and the rule of law.

In our foreign policy we will prioritize conflict prevention and crisis management; promoting human rights and human security; and strengthening effective multilateralism. The EU firmly believes that preventing conflicts is not only a moral imperative, but also considerably less costly in the long run. We must address the root causes of conflicts and deny support to terrorism. We will continue to champion human rights and put particular emphasis on human security – responding to the full range of threats afflicting the most vulnerable in societies across the world, such as hunger, deadly diseases, environmental degradation and physical insecurity. We will also continue to support the UN system as the guarantor of international law and the arbiter of international peace and security and participate actively in the reform debate later this year.

We face a number of challenges in the coming year, such as communicating to our citizens the benefits of our new Constitution and working towards another EU expansion. We have just signed Accession Treaties with Bulgaria and Romania, and once our monitoring shows that they have satisfactorily implemented their commitments, they will join the EU. Furthermore, in December 2004 the EU’s Member States decided that, providing they fulfill certain prerequisites, we should begin membership negotiations with Croatia and Turkey this year. There is also much work to be done with other countries in the Balkans who aspire to join the EU.

2005 is also the year we start implementing our new European Neighborhood Policy (ENP). Having finally overcome 60 years of division in Europe, we are determined not to create a new set of dividing lines in Europe and want to capitalize on our new members’ relations with their neighbors to project the EU’s stability, prosperity and security beyond our shores. So we have developed the ENP to build a special relationship with these new neighbors, aimed at bringing them closer to our values and standards. In return for their taking meaningful steps to strengthen the rule of law, good governance, human rights, democracy and economic reform, we offer new opportunities to share in the EU’s Single Market, closer co-operation on energy and transport links and a chance to participate in EU programs.

The EU is becoming an increasingly strong player in the international arena, which gives us a firm platform from which to develop closer ties with partners across the world. We want to develop an outward-looking Europe – for our interests, but also for our partners. Through our network of delegations overseas, the European Commission is working to develop ever-deeper relationships with its partners. We need a worldwide network of friends to address the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.

All of this makes the EU a more interesting partner for other countries. We are changing fast, and developments like our enlargement and the new Constitution provide new opportunities for us all. I look forward to building on these and working with all our international partners throughout my mandate as Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighborhood Policy.