President Barroso's speech on the relationship between the EU and the ACP Group

Yours Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentleman,

I am delighted to have the opportunity to participate today in the opening of the ACP Council of Ministers. Speaking to the European Parliament earlier this month I outlined the agenda for the European Commission which took office last week. I highlighted our wish to consolidate our leadership in striving for peace, security and sustainable development around the globe. It is in this context that I wished to take this early opportunity to speak to you, to underline the importance Europe attaches to working with its partners around the world and to reflect on the close ties that bind your group to Europe.

The relationship between the European Union and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group can be traced right back to the founding of the European Community and to the provisions in the Treaty of Rome for the Overseas Countries and Territories. Over the decades our relationship has been enriched by successive enlargements of what is now the European Union and by the growth of the ACP Group to its current level of 79 sovereign states. The new Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe sets out the Union's objectives for its relations with the wider world. The values it sets out, including free and fair trade, eradication of poverty and the protection of human rights are at the heart of the partnership we pursue through the Cotonou Agreement.

The nature of our relations has changed greatly over the years. The Yaoundé Convention linked Europe of the founding 6 states to 18 African States and covered trade and financial and technical cooperation. Over the years, not only has the geographical scope been extended, but, the partnership has been broadened to contribute to peace and security and to promote a stable and democratic political environment.

This partnership has been established and has endured through experiences of decolonisation, of the end of the Cold War, of the recognition of the impact of globalisation and now, the understanding that in a time of threat from conflict and terrorism, that security can be secured only through international agreement and cooperation. In this context, our partnership with the ACP Group is an essential link, one the European Union values as part of our pursuit of peace and prosperity, for our citizens and for yours.

I am aware that the ties binding the ACP Group are also evolving. This is essential if we are to ensure that a partnership on paper is demonstrated in reality. There is much we can do in Europe to promote partnership between us, and undoubtedly more that could be done, but a real partnership requires mutual cooperation and respect. We look to our partners to identify their priorities for development and recognise that without ownership of development strategies that these are not sustainable. Having learnt, through bitter experience, of the need for peace and security to promote development, we welcome the way regional and sub-regional groups have been taking responsibility for conflict resolution. We are able to support those initiatives, notably those of the African Union, but also initiatives in other regions and in African sub-regions. We welcome the commitment of the ACP Group as a whole, set out in the declaration adopted in the ACP Summit in Maputo, to promote peace building, to combat terrorism, to support efforts against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and to eradicate the illicit trade in small arms.

Your group is a very diverse one. The experiences of large States and small islands may be very different, but together you can have a weight and influence in the multilateral system to which you and we are committed. Whether it is in the United Nations system or the WTO, we are always happy to see our ACP partners. I encourage you to continue to promote the visibility of the ACP Group. We look forward to ACP concerns being articulated more clearly on the international scene and to working with you not just in Brussels, but throughout the world and in different institutional frameworks.

I am pleased to have been able to deliver a message on the continuing relevance and undiminished political importance of EU-ACP relations to your Council meeting. I know that you have much to do and wish you well in doing it. The work you do and we do together is vital if we are to achieve our objectives to reduce and eventually eradicate poverty, to promote sustainable development and gradually to integrate ACP countries into the world economy. Having made this early contact with your group, I look forward to a deepening of our partnership in the framework of the Cotonou Agreement over the coming years and to future opportunities for dialogue.

Mesdames et Messieurs,

Avant de conclure, permettez-moi d'ajouter quelques mots de nature plus personnelle. Avant de devenir Premier-ministre de mon pays, j'ai passé plus de huit ans au Ministère des affaires étrangères, en tant que secrétaire d'Etat aux affaires étrangères et coopération et en tant que Ministre. Pendant cette période, j'ai eu le plaisir de m'occuper directement des relations avec les pays ACP et en particulier j'ai eu l'occasion de participer activement aux négociations de la Convention de Lomé. Ceci m'a permis de visiter une bonne partie de vos pays et connaître personnellement nombreux dirigeants des pays ACP, parmi lesquels j'ai fait de bons amis. Cette expérience m'a beaucoup appris. Elle me permet de vous faire part aujourd'hui de ma conviction profonde que les relations extérieures de l'Union avec les pays ACP requièrent et méritent bien plus qu'un discours technocratique. Nous avons besoin d'un supplément d'âme, d'un esprit de mission, nous avons besoin de passion. C'est cet esprit qui animera la Commission que je préside.

Avec Louis Michel en charge de ce dossier, je peux vous assurer que la passion et l'engagement seront au rendez-vous. Mais aussi la connaissance et l'expertise. Avec lui, nous ne ménagerons pas nos efforts pour mobiliser toutes les énergies au sein de la Commission, mais également du côté des Etats membres, pour être à la hauteur des défis qui se présentent dans nos rapports avec vos pays.

Vous pouvez compter sur la Commission européenne. Nous comptons sur vous.

Merci, bon travail et à bientôt.

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• Commissioner Mandelson's speech on 'The ACP-EU relationship in the global economy' (1/12/2004)