Priorities of the Finnish EU Presidency

Priorities of the Finnish EU Presidency as outlined in Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen's address to Parliament on 21 June 2006 (the whole speech can be found at: www.eu2006.fi)

The first priority is a general one, the future of the European Union. This priority covers the Constitutional Treaty as well as the enlargement discussion in general. Last Friday, the European Council decided, in line with Finland's objectives, that with regard to the Constitutional Treaty it is time to move on from mere reflection to delivering concrete results and implementing projects. This twin-track approach is right: We will improve the way the Union functions on the basis of the existing Treaties at the same time as we bring the mere passive reflection period to a close and start discussing how to proceed with it. Finland will start work on these tasks during its Presidency.

The Union will need new rules before long so that we can work effectively and with legitimacy in the future. I hope that the Finnish Parliament will come to a decision on the ratification of the Constitutional Treaty during our Presidency.

Enlargement will be one of the central themes during our Presidency. Our starting point is that EU enlargement has been a success story. Politically and morally, it has been clear throughout the process that the new Member States, which joined in May 2004, are European countries that should naturally be accepted as members. In addition, the report published by the Commission this spring shows that the historic enlargement has been an economic success as well. Both old and new members have gained.

I am pleased that at its meeting last week, the European Council did not change the membership criteria, agreed in Copenhagen in 1993. I am strongly of the opinion that the commitments must be honoured. While no new criteria should be set for current or future candidates, the existing criteria must be met. We need the same rules for all, with each candidate country treated by its own merits.

Membership negotiations with Turkey and Croatia, and the situation in the Western Balkans, will require a lot of our attention during our Presidency. The accession timetable for Romania and Bulgaria will also be decided this autumn.

The European Council decided to address all aspects of future enlargement at the end of the Finnish Presidency in December 2006. Finland's objective will be to achieve a new consensus on enlargement. Our starting point is that also in the future the Union should be developed as united as possible. Enhanced cooperation is of course possible and may even sometimes turn out to be necessary. However, it is crucial that we do not deliberately create two or more classes of membership. All Member States should be equal, now as in the future.

The second crucial area during Finland's Presidency is the competitiveness of the Union and its Member States as well as their performance in global competition. For Finland, this is a national as well as a Presidency mission. In both cases, it comes right at the top of the agenda. Although the situation is different for each Member State, I believe that, on the basis of our own experiences, Finland has something to offer the Union.

Finland will focus on competitiveness widely in various Council formations. The key challenge is to identify the basis for economic growth in Europe. Finland's answer includes innovation, energy solutions, quality of work and productivity, openness of global trade, immigration and well-functioning social protection system.

However, the Union can deal with only some of these problems. The individual projects addressing these include the Seventh Framework Programme for research and the EU Regulation on chemicals, REACH. The Member States have the main responsibility here; they should assume ownership. They are also responsible for improving our competitiveness.

European competitiveness, and the innovation policy in particular, will be the main point on the agenda at the informal meeting of Heads of State and Government in Lahti in October. We will also discuss external energy relations. The President of Russia, Mr Vladimir Putin, has been invited to join the dinner after the meeting. This will give us an opportunity to have an informal discussion together.

I have emphasised on several occasions that the Government does not want to achieve competitiveness at any cost, regardless of the consequences. We must also bear in mind the rights of the most vulnerable members of society as well as our common environment. We do not have a single social model in Europe, and there is no reason to try to create one. Nevertheless, in global terms the EU countries share a similar approach to the aforementioned 'soft' sectors, social protection and sustainable development. No one is master of their own fortune, without help from others at different stages of their lives. The welfare-state-oriented European approach has aroused interest outside Europe as it differs for instance from the American or Asian approach. This combination - a competitive Europe that is strong in social terms - will be our strength also in the future, and we will hold on to it. This is European model.

Enhanced competitiveness and changes in society must be considered reasonable from the citizens' point of view. This is why we must take care of their security needs. In the labour market this means looking for functional models to combine flexibility and competitiveness with a sufficient degree of security. If we fail to do this, people might turn against the Union. In this respect the Nordic countries can make a contribution to the Union.

Prior to the meeting of the Heads of State and Government in Lahti, we will host a Tripartite Social Summit, where we will have the opportunity to present our Finnish model.

In terms of environmental policy, our priorities are climate change and the Baltic Sea.

The third priority during Finland's Presidency will be external relations. There is a link to the economy here, since the Union's economic strength forms the basis for its external action. From being an attractive and interesting trading partner follows influence.

The EU has become global actor which does not have time for reflection pause in its external action. Politically and economically, the EU participates in strengthening peace and stability on our own continent and elsewhere. The Union is involved in crisis and conflict management both with civilian and military resources. Its citizens expect the Union to be active, while expectations from outside the EU are that the Union will act decisively and assume leadership in solving international questions.

During Finland's Presidency, we aim at strengthening the EU's international role and reinforce the consistency of its actions. Compared to many other global players, the Union has a comprehensive set of instruments at its disposal. These should be used with consistency. The Union's voice will be heard only if we speak with one voice.

We will further develop the Union's crisis management. Full operational capability of the rapid reaction force from the beginning of 2007 must be confirmed during our Presidency. We will continue to align civil and military crisis management. The EU is leading the development of a comprehensive crisis management system, which will take on board security needs. Even here, the EU is leading the way.

The EU's relations with our most important neighbour, Russia, and the Northern Dimension are included in the list of priorities during our term. We believe that we can contribute towards improving relations between the EU and Russia. These cannot be limited to trade and energy but must extend to a broad-ranging partnership, in which we can share our European values and global interests. Our aim is to strengthen Russia's commitment to European co-operation. In order to succeed, we need more interaction between the EU countries and Russia, student exchange programmes and cultural cooperation.

We should put the EU's relations with Russia on a new footing; a more long- term framework is needed. These issues will be discussed with the objective of reaching agreement on opening negotiations by the end of this year. As regards the Northern Dimension, we have already come a long way: the new political framework agreement will be signed during the coming autumn. It will enable the EU, Russia, Norway and Iceland to work together as equal partners on issues relating to this northern part of the world.

In external relations, we will also pay special attention to Transatlantic relations and Asia. The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), in September, will be the largest international meeting ever organised in Finland.

The fourth priority covers promoting citizens' access to justice and strengthening the international justice system. Assessing the Hague programme will allow us to carry out a thorough political analysis of Justice and Home Affairs.

Citizens expect the European Union to fight effectively against international crime, human trafficking and terrorism. Finland will identify possibilities to streamline the decision-making procedures on police and judicial cooperation. The possibilities in the current Nice treaty to use qualified majority voting would be a significant step towards improving the efficiency of decision-making.

The fifth and last priority which I would particularly like to mention here is transparent and efficient procedures. Transparency will be increased in accordance with the European Council's decision last week. In principle all Council deliberations under the co-decision procedure will be public. This decision is welcomed by Finland, which has consistently highlighted the need for transparency. I believe that transparency will also help us win citizens' confidence and enhance EU's legitimacy. Here we will apply common sense: transparency in the legislative process does not prevent ministers from holding confidential discussions when necessary.

Finland will emphasize better regulation, i.e. the quality of legislation, and the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. We will cooperate closely with the Commission and the goal is legislation that takes into account the implications of the legislation as well the necessity of European Union level legislation in the first place.

For further information on the Finnish Presidency, please see: www.eu2006.fi

| Arriba |

• EU General Affairs Council Conclusions (17/7/2006)
• Welcome message from Ambassador Kirsti Lintonen, Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations (1/7/2006)
• Who's Who at the Mission of Finland to the United Nations (1/7/2006)
• Calendar of the Finnish Presidency July - December 2006 (1/7/2006)