European Commission
Malmström

On the agenda for today’s Commission meeting was the strategy for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development to be held in Brazil this summer, known as the Rio + 20 summit. It has been some time since we had a proper discussion on sustainable development in this constellation. Week after week the focus has rather been on the economic crisis, and although we are some Commissioners who are constantly trying to point out that green growth and sustainability is important to actually emerge stronger from the crisis, these issues tend to be sidelined. So it was good to have a proper discussion today.

As of last year, we are now 7 billion people on this earth and this figure will only increase. We must therefore use our natural resources more sustainably and for this reason it is also important that countries at the meeting in Rio can make some progress on this issue. We discussed the goals that the EU should prioritize our key allies and the need for a close dialogue with the industry on these issues.

Early this morning I also met with the Jordanian Foreign Minister. Jordan is a country which in recent years increasingly is seeking a closer cooperation with the EU. The country has not undergone a revolution, but the government is aiming to implement important reforms and changes. Last week there was a high-level meeting between the EU and Jordan, led by Cathie Ashton. One of the issues discussed was the visa requirements and we are investigating the feasibility of opening negotiations with Jordan, just as we do with Tunisia, a so-called mobility partnership, where we expand our cooperation in the fields of asylum, security, trafficking, visa, labour migration, etc. We decided to send a delegation of officials from my DG to Amman within a few weeks to continue discussions on a more technical level.

After the Christmas holidays, we are now back up to full speed in the European institutions. Yesterday I took the morning train to London to attend a meeting with Liberal politicians, hosted by Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg. The Dutch and Estonian Prime Ministers, the German Vice-Chancellor, the Deputy Prime Ministers of Denmark, Cyprus, Belgium and Sweden, the Head of Government of Catalonia, the liberal ministers from the British coalition government, the Liberal leader in the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, the Chairman of the liberal European party ELDR, Graham Watson, and some of my liberal colleagues in the Commission were all there. We gathered for an all day meeting that went on into the evening, to discuss the economic crisis, the euro pact and Britain’s role, growth issues, the long-term budget and the alarming situation in Hungary. We hope that the design of the agreement from the European Council last December, the so called “fiscal compact” should be such that all countries can join, including the UK. Nick Clegg shares this sentiment. The work on the final text is ongoing.

Today we received the news that the two imprisoned Swedish journalists Martin Schibbye and Johan Persson have chosen not to appeal the ruling sentencing them to 11 years in prison for supporting terrorism in Ethiopia. The two journalists have admitted that they entered the country illegally but deny allegations of terrorist crimes. You might expect an innocent man to appeal such a ruling. But the choice not to appeal could be strategic, as an appeal would take even longer than securing a pardon. The Swedish government are in dialogue with Ethiopia and also the EU is watching Ethiopia and will continue to work for the release of Martin and Johan and for the full respect of press freedom – one of the cornerstones of a democratic state. Just before Christmas, the Committee to Protect Journalists published a report on the number of journalists imprisoned. These are worrying figures. I also hope that 2012 is the year Dawit Isaak will be released and reunited with his family.

Looking back at 2011, it has definitely been a very eventful year. The economic crisis has put pressure on people, politicians, governments and the European institutions. The problems are far from resolved as we enter 2012. There is still a long way to go.  But I hope we can shift our gaze in 2012 from the European crisis to providing all the support we can to a democratic transition in our neighbourhood.

The events last year related to the Arab spring really were historic. That people, in one country after another, stood up in protest against dictators, demanding free elections, democracy and human rights is truly amazing. Ben Ali and Mubarak are now gone and Kadaffi is dead.  This creates new conditions in countries where democracy has been in short supply. The brave people in Syria continue their protest against the violent and utterly tone-deaf regime.  I really hope that we will also see a change of regime in Damascus.

Another event that touched me deeply in 2011 is the massacre at Utöya in Norway last summer. It is still so unspeakably cruel and incomprehensible, and it has made us aware of how important it is to work together to identify extremists of all kinds and prevent that acts of violence of this kind is repeating themselves. The launch of the Radicalisation Awareness Network in September has been a great success, allowing many people to come together to share experiences in an effort to prevent violence.

The Poles have now handed over the EU Presidency to the Danes. The Poles had a hard time during the Autumn, in the shadow of “Merkozy”, but Prime Minister Tusk handled the situation well and has shown great European leadership. In my area, we have taken small but important steps forward regarding the asylum package. As the Danes now taken over it is important to continue these efforts so that, by the end of the year, we hopefully have all the pieces in place.

And as the new year begins, we are closely following the worrying developments in Hungary. The new Constitution has just come into force and it contains several problematic clauses that do not appear to be consistent with the fundamental values that all EU countries endorse. It has also led to large protests in Hungary. In addition, new laws have been adopted which greatly undermine both the Hungarian Central Bank, the judiciary and the Data Protection Ombudsman’s independence. The Commission has repeatedly expressed concern for these laws, and for the Constitution. Chairman Barroso has already sent two letters to the Hungarian Prime Minister, asking for clarification.

There is certainly no shortage of things to do in 2012, but let me take this opportunity to wish you all a very Happy New Year!

At today’s meeting with the College of Commissioners, there was a long discussion on the economic situation, ahead of this weekend’s Summit.  It is a very difficult time in Europe and therefore important that EU leaders present a comprehensive programme that can pull the EU out of the crisis.  The discussion in the meeting on Sunday will focus on Greece, on the mandate of the European Rescue Fund, on the recapitalisation of banks, and some institutional issues.  The Commission’s action plan, presented last week, will be the basis for discussion.  But we, of course, need to go further.  The meeting will begin with all EU Member States, and then continue with only the 17 Member States in the Eurozone.  As these States grow closer, we are seeing this split more and more.  Exclusion of the 10 EU Member States outside the Eurozone, including Sweden, is increasingly evident.  Some want to institutionalise this division through amendments to the Treaty, which would be extremely unfortunate.

Based on the current situation, it is encouraging that the Commission today proposed an investment package of 50 billion Euro in order to better link EU transport, energy and broadband networks.  These grants will specifically be used for construction of roads, railways, energy, oil and gas pipelines and broadband networks.  These are investments that promote growth, as well as the internal market, that make it easier for people to travel around Europe and that contribute to increased trade.    

Yesterday evening the EU cancelled a meeting between Barroso and the President of Ukraine.  The Ukraine must show that it has a legal system that meets European standards in terms rule of law and independence of judiciary.  Unfortunately this is not the case today.

2011-06-07 The economic crisis that hit Europe in 2008 showed us the strong links between the EU economies. The Spanish economy affects the German, the Swedish economy is linked to the Estonian and so on. The lesson learned was that a better economic and budgetary coordination is needed. Therefore, the EU agreed on the so-called European Semester, which should help Member States to gear up their economic and social policies to deliver on growth, jobs and public finances. To this aim, the European Commission – based on national programmes submitted by Member States – has today issued country specific, tailor-made recommendations for each EU Member State. The European Council will discuss these recommendations at the end of June.

These recommendations mainly focus on public finances, more competitive tax systems, public investment, labour market reform and other measures that help stimulating growth. The issue of labour market reform is of special interest to me as this includes labour migration which is part of my portfolio. The importance of labour migration will increase in the following years due to the demographic challenges that Europe will be facing. I am very optimistic that the European Semester will help to encourage new debates and actions on this important issue.