News coverage from Haiti tells a story of chaos and despair in the wake of the massive earthquake that struck the country on January 12; but disasters on this scale – which with a death toll of nearly 200,000 dead is one of the worst in history – raise also the sense of responsibility and commitment from others countries, bring out the best in people, and force to rethink the future. In this first day of my new mandate as Commissioner for Development, I would like to share with you some thoughts about the last three weeks and draw some conclusions on the actions undertaken by the EU and the ones foreseen in the near future.

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On the eve of the Christmas break, I want to come back on a number of major political events that occurred on the European stage over the last months. Irish people expressed a convincing “yes” in the referendum, allowing the Treaty of Lisbon to enter into force on 1 December 2009. The first ever permanent President of the European Council has been appointed, together with the High Representative of the European Union. And President Barroso designated his new team of Commissioners, in charge of shaping EU policy for the next 5 years…

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