Speech by President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen at the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo on 29 November 2006

(check against delivery) Towards global security and development — Foreign policy challenges of the European Union

The common conception of war and peace has changed. Peace is not just the absence of war; it must be about development, human security, respect for human rights, democracy and many other things crucial for human welfare. To reduce poverty is to prevent conflicts. The decision to award this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to Professor Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank fits in well with this approach.

The new global security problems we face also have to do with climate change and other environmental issues. These have unexpectedly quickly become issues of day-to-day politics, such as energy crises. Contagious diseases, legal and illegal migration, and combating poverty are also among the security issues of today’s world.

Responding to these challenges and problems requires multilateral international cooperation. It is widely hoped that this could be coordinated by the United Nations and its organizations. However, it is becoming very urgent indeed to strengthen such cooperation.


Europe is today more prosperous, more secure and more free than ever before

We Europeans could have a lot to contribute. The development of our continent is encouraging. Democracy, human rights and the rule of law constitute our new European identity. Europe is today more prosperous, more secure and more free than ever before. European integration has secured both peace and wellbeing.

Both Norway and Finland have cooperated extensively in pursuing this development as members of the Council of Europe and as members of the OSCE. The European Union also shares these values, and enlargement of the European Union has contributed to stability in Europe.

The European Union aims to respect these shared values in all contexts both within the EU and in external relations. In recent years, the EU and its Member States have rapidly developed their common foreign and security policy, and also their crisis management capability. According to the EU security strategy approved in 2003, internal and external security considerations are inextricably connected.

However, there is still a lot of work to be done to improve practical cooperation. Indeed, this is one of the goals of the Finnish EU Presidency. More influence can only be gained through consensus and good cooperation. The EU should now pay more attention to consistency between different policy sectors, such as development cooperation and trade policy.

The EU has also been pursuing comprehensive development of its crisis management capability, covering both traditional military crisis management and the newer civil crisis management. The purpose of the EU Rapid Reaction Force is to provide the international community, and particularly the United Nations, with a quicker and more coordinated option for military crisis management. It is obvious that in both the new and the traditional kind of crisis management it is essential to establish cooperation between the EU and NATO. In the context of the Rapid Reaction Force, Finland will be taking its first tour of duty together with Germany and the Netherlands for six months from the beginning of 2007. Our next tour of duty will be shared with Sweden, Norway and Estonia at the beginning of 2008.

There are many other interesting things to come, yet I believe that the greatest impact of the European Union on both European and global security, from the historical perspective, is its economic integration, which rests on a base of shared democratic values. The wide-scale enlargement initiated by the EU after the end of the Cold War, an enlargement that still continues, is of decisive importance in this.

It was in the context of this enlargement that the new neighbourhood policy was developed in 2004. Last week in Helsinki we celebrated the conversion of the Northern Dimension into a partnership between the EU, Russia, Norway and Iceland. The purpose of these policies was to avoid the emergence of demarcation lines between the enlarged EU and its neighbours and to strengthen stability, security and welfare in regions near the EU. The European Economic Area, which includes Norway, is a more advanced form of economic cooperation. Norway’s presence in the Schengen Treaty makes it easier for people to travel and is yet further testimony to the flexibility of European integration.

But the world does not end at Europe. We face several global trends which affect our destiny. Here today, I would like to draw your attention to two major problem clusters. One involves people and their movements in the world; the other involves climate change and its consequences.


Population growth, ageing and migration shake up societies

The global population is expected to grow from 6.4 billion last year to 7.9 billion in 2025. Population growth is particularly strong in developing countries: in sub-Saharan Africa, in northern Africa and the Middle East, in Latin America, and in Asia. Population growth in the developed countries is low on average, but there are great national differences. In the USA, the population is expected to grow by over 17% by 2025, while in the EU the figure is 2%. By contrast, the population of Japan is expected to decrease by 2.6%, and the population of Russia by 10.9%.

But will this actually happen? Many developing countries are facing an unexpected demographic shift. Women in developing countries, be they in Egypt, Indonesia, China, India, Brazil or Mexico, are questioning the traditional social models and only want to have one or two children, just like women in the industrialized countries. This change does not seem to be directly linked with economic growth but stems instead from how women in developing countries see themselves. A falling birth rate in developing countries has not been considered a bad thing as such, but its consequences may be unpredictable, especially in poor countries with a low standard of health and social care. We should be making enormous investment in the long-term development of developing countries — not just their economies but also their social, health and education policies.

Another global demographic trend may be found in Europe. Europe is rich, but it is also becoming older and needs more labour. The solutions sought involve improving the education system and raising the retirement age but also, and again, promoting migration. Migration has very rapidly become the number one priority in public debate in Europe, and there are no easy solutions. When we talk about migration, we are always talking about people, not about theoretical production factors. Migration is a difficult and challenging matter for the migrants themselves, for their families, for their native countries and for their new homelands — or, as international treaties put it, the countries of origin and the countries of destination. We need more and better international cooperation for turning migration into a positive force for all parties concerned.

The high-level dialogue at the General Assembly of the United Nations this autumn was the first attempt at addressing this topic. The World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization appointed by the International Labour Organization considered a framework on the trans-border movement of people to be an important requirement for achieving a more human globalization and for promoting decent employment.


Climate change is an economic reality, not just an ecological one

We share this world. The negative impacts of today’s industrial development have been known to us for a long time, but we have not been able — or willing — to respond to them adequately. The Kyoto Protocol was the first major achievement, but it has been slow in its implementation, and it is nowhere near as comprehensive as it should be now that the United States, for instance, has opted out of it. We should already be preparing for the post-Kyoto era.

The poorest people are always the most vulnerable, and nothing has changed in this respect. The direct consequences of global warming — desertification and flooding — will hit worst in Africa and Asia, where agricultural land already suffers from droughts.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Nairobi two weeks ago achieved a significant outcome in that a decision was reached unanimously on the Adaptation Fund, which will help the poorest countries to adapt to climate change.

Neither Europe nor the United States come out unscathed from climate change. Millions of people may become homeless as the sea level rises. In our neighbourhood, the polar bear will disappear from the Arctic and the ringed seal from the Baltic Sea because of the ice melting. We are saddened. But will being sad bring about a change?

‘The Economics of Climate Change’ is a report commissioned by the British Government last year. It demonstrates that global warming will have a greater impact than previously imagined on the global economy too. Its author, Sir Nicholas Stern, came to the conclusion that it is essential to reduce the volume of greenhouse gas emissions caused by humans. The more quickly we act, the lower the costs caused by climate change will be. Perhaps this will make us more ready to embrace change.

Bringing climate change back to the trans-Atlantic agenda was a major challenge for the Finnish EU Presidency. A dialogue on climate change, clean energy and sustainable development was initiated between the EU and the United States in Helsinki in early November. This dialogue will offer an excellent opportunity for the EU and the USA to exchange experiences on climate and energy policy solutions and to discuss important energy technology and research projects in this field.

During Finland’s EU Presidency, climate change has also been discussed at the ASEM summit and at EU summits with China and India. Increased diplomatic activity is the first step towards the inevitable measures for determining a global price for carbon dioxide emissions, either through taxation or through emissions trading, and for developing new, environmentally friendly technology, for improving energy efficiency and for educating consumers.

According to a recent report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), it is possible to achieve a 10% savings in energy consumption by 2030 compared with the present by means of energy conservation, new energy and technology and improved efficiency. This saving is equal to the current energy consumption of the whole of China. Achieving such a target will require governments to make far-reaching energy policy decisions. These will not always be easy.


Continuing opposition to globalization and the West

It is indisputable that globalization will continue and strengthen. Dependency between countries and regions will also increase. On the other hand, opposition to globalization may increase as cultural diversities encounter one another and economic differences become stronger.

A lot has happened since 9/11: in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in Israel, in Lebanon, and much closer to home, too. There has been debate on freedom of the press, on women’s rights, on religions and on much more besides. I do not consider that this is about a clash of civilizations or cultures; it is about different societies and a struggle between political means and ends.


How can we promote positive progress and prevent the realization of threat scenarios?

The UN system should be developed so as to make it more capable of responding to modern challenges and the management of globalization. The new structures approved at the UN summit in 2005, the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council, are positive endeavours to find new tools and improve coordination in conflict management. By contrast, there is no sign, unfortunately, of progress in reforming the Security Council.

We need new multilateral forms of cooperation to address new global threats in Europe and beyond. The UN needs to be reformed, but the responsibilities of the G8 countries and emerging economies are also increasing. Developing countries must be given more scope to participate in international economic and financial institutions. Regional cooperation must be encouraged in Africa and Asia.

Intergovernmental institutions have been joined by less formal forums, and multilateral meetings are being arranged on an ad hoc basis by individual governments and groups of governments. Networks that may involve both governments and NGOs are increasing in influence. We Europeans must be prepared to seek out suitable forums and to participate in them effectively.

We need a new conception of security. Security is all about the wellbeing of people and their ability to live a life of their choice as a member of their society. The conventional military paradigm of war prevalent in the last century is inconsistent with the global era and modern warfare.

International crisis management must be developed. Crisis management requires both military and civilian professional expertise. Cooperation should be developed by taking the safeguarding of human security — the security of the individual — as the objective of crisis management.

Post-conflict reconstruction must be launched in tandem with the local population. Stabilization is not a sufficient goal in conflict prevention or post-conflict peacekeeping. What is needed is social construction — promotion of employment, less exclusion, education, and so on. It is important to remember that international missions should not leave the local population out of the planning process concerning the future of their country.

Supporting and protecting women in conflicts and participation in conflict resolution require further investment under UN Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. Human trafficking, which mostly involves women and girls, is an extreme example of utter contempt for human dignity and human rights. Norway offers a prime example of officials acting together to draw up a practicable programme for implementing the UN Resolution in national policy.

Dialogue between Europeans, particularly the EU, and strategic partners such as Russia, China, India and Brazil on global issues is vital. Supporting good governance, democracy and the rule of law in these countries will improve their potential for responding and adapting to global challenges.

The EU and the United States must progress to deeper co-operation on major global issues. This partnership can constitute a significant initiative in the solving of regional and global problems.

Above all, dialogue between cultures on values, ways of life and human rights is essential. We must be sensitive to and respectful of other ways of life while respecting basic human values.

I have focused here on the major security challenges that we are facing in the long term. Naturally, our daily agenda is full of the acute challenges of today — the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear programme, Kosovo and many others. However, I am convinced that we need to view the ‘soft’ security challenges more clearly as our most important security challenges.

I would like to conclude by thanking the Nobel Institute of Norway for inviting me to speak here today. I am now happy to take any questions or comments you may have. Thank you for your attention.