Speech by President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen at the Charlemagne Prize Forum in Aachen, 24 May 2006

‘Conditions and perspectives in a united Europe’ (check against delivery)

European cooperation and integration to promote peace, stability and welfare is a success story. Together we have created a new European value base: respect for democracy, human rights and the rule of law. The importance of our shared values is highlighted in our shared institutions, first in the Council of Europe and then in the European Union. Today, these values are global.

For nearly six decades, we have built international cooperation on the foundation of these shared values. It is only appropriate in such cooperation to focus on challenges that individual states could not cope with on their own.

The need for cooperation in Europe today is as pressing as it was five decades ago. Although the threat of a classical war is no longer current — thanks to our cooperation — there are new and many-faceted challenges. Climate change, contagious diseases, globalization and energy security are matters that no country can manage or solve on its own. Only shared solutions can be sustainable ones, be they European or global.

The results of European cooperation are so impressive that we have come to take them for granted. The internal market, the single currency and the rights of people living in the European Union are commonplace today. Our young people consider it only natural that all the universities of Europe are open to them and that they can find employment in any member state of the European Union.

In a way, the Union is a child of its time — a creation of the generation that experienced the war and the immediate post-war era. Germany’s collective responsibility for the recent history and its willingness and ability to become the principal financer of the new cooperation certainly made it easier to undertake such an effort. But I feel that this era is now past. The world today is global, and the new European Union has to face up to its responsibility. We need to develop the Union’s targets and procedures so as to respond to these new challenges.

The Union must be based on genuine cooperation and solidarity, and on the desire to create a better future together. The principles of cooperation and solidarity have increasingly been called into question in recent years. Many people think that selfishness is the order of the day. However, blinkered selfishness is ultimately self-defeating in society and in the EU. European integration has always been and must always be cooperation that benefits all participating countries. We are in a win-win model, not a zero-sum game. It is a form of sustainable development.

Throughout Finland’s membership, our integration policy has been based on this notion. We believe that this is the best way of influencing, benefiting ourselves and carrying our responsibility for matters affecting our entire continent. I am convinced that this is the way forward for the EU, both internally in Europe and globally.

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Enlargement has promoted stability and security in Europe. According to a recent report by the Commission, the enlargement that took place two years ago has benefited both old and new member states. Successful enlargement also increases the international importance of the European Union. Finland has declared herself in favour of further future enlargement on several occasions. Our citizens also remain largely in favour.

The recent, still ongoing enlargement process has increased the attraction of EU membership among countries who have not yet acceded to it. The prospect of full membership seems to be the only engine that can start up social reforms, as in the Balkans, for instance. Attraction is all very well, but for the enlargement to succeed, clear criteria must be set for membership, and candidate countries must absolutely fulfil these criteria in order to be able to accede to the EU.

The Copenhagen Criteria are still valid and necessary. We cannot allow deviations from them, because it would be detrimental both to the EU and to the applicant country.

The EU has to apply the same principles to all applicant countries, and each applicant must progress towards membership on its own merits. We should also remember what the criteria do not include. We are not aiming at a single culture. Quite the contrary — a plurality of cultures is a richness for Europe.

The EU has affirmed time and again that it is open to all European countries that fulfil the required conditions. The real question is about timing: when will the applicant country be ready to accede, and when will the Union realistically be able to absorb it?

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Because of the European Union’s new duties and rapid growth, its effectiveness and structures must be improved. The Constitutional Treaty is an effort in this direction.

It is important to maintain the delicate balance of the Treaty through the reflection period and to reach a consensus on a new solution already next year.

It would be unrealistic to consider that the countries who have already rejected the Constitutional Treaty once in a referendum could be forced into accepting it. Equally, it would be impossible to force countries that have already ratified the Constitutional Treaty into accepting a new or an amended treaty.

European integration does not happen through coercion or pressure. Integration can only proceed as a project serving shared targets and interests, with the support of citizens. A new Treaty for the Union can only be achieved through a just and equal negotiation process.

Finland has methodically supported the Constitutional Treaty. This treaty is not perfect. It does not embody all of our negotiation targets. And yet it is a jointly approved compromise, and we feel it is a significant improvement on the present state of affairs.

A thorough political debate has been waged in Finland concerning the benefits and detriments of the Treaty. At Parliament’s own request, the Finnish Government will next week submit a bill regarding ratification of the Treaty in Finland. We are doing this fully conscious of the fact that the Treaty will probably never come into force in its present shape and that any new treaty will have to be ratified all over again.

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The success of the European Union is ultimately based on the confidence of its citizens, which in turn rests on everyday experience. The Europeans of today want freedom, but they also want security. They are firmly in favour of sustainable development, but they also want creature comforts. People want to work and earn their own living, but society is also expected to provide social security. Globalization manifests itself in people’s lives in many ways. While it offers tangible opportunities, it is also seen as a real threat.

It is still the case that a nation-state bears primary responsibility for the people living within its borders. All European countries are fairly small by international standards. Finland is strongly in favour of developing the internal market and implementing the Lisbon Strategy. This will help growth and employment. I have observed with some concern the weakening of the internal market tradition. It is the responsibility of all of us, but also a benefit for all of us, to develop honest and transparent cooperation.

Europe can be a winner in global competition in the future. This will require expertise, which, in turn, requires investment in training, research and development. In accordance with a jointly taken EU-level decision, the aim is to invest three per cent of the gross national income in research and development. Finland already exceeds this aim, but the European average falls sadly far short of the mark.

Finland has invested much more both in basic education and in research and development than many other EU member states. Accordingly, Finland has done well in international comparisons of competitiveness. Our economic growth has also been ecologically and socially sustainable. Our school system has been appraised as the best in the OECD countries, and we have a high level of social protection. Our environmental protection is ranked high in international comparisons. This demonstrates that an open market economy and high competitiveness, on the one hand, and social justice, on the other, need not be mutually exclusive.

Ageing population and working force are a particular challenge – for individuals and society - in Finland and in Europe. Ageing population with ever accelerating social and technological development require enhanced investments on vocational training and lifelong learning. It is clear that skills acquired decades ago are not current in today’s working environment. On the other hand, seasoned workers and professionals can be an invaluable asset with their tested and practical experience for their younger colleagues. The road to lifelong learning starts with attitude in the society and in work places to appreciate age and experience. I firmly believe that when people are provided with possibilities to life long learning and constantly improving their skills, they will seize the opportunity.

Another important ingredient in order to succeed in global competition is to build partnerships and agreements with third countries or regions. Obvious partners are United States, Russia, Latin America and Asia. All countries or regions with whom the EU is already working with. We should also strengthen our co-operation with developing nations, especially in Africa. This would certainly be in the interest of African Nations, but also in our self-interest.

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In slightly over a month’s time, Finland will be taking up the EU Presidency. I well remember our first Presidency in 1999, as I was then the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Seven years ago, we learned that however well one plans and prepares for the Presidency, unforeseen events can hijack public attention.

Matter-of-fact efficiency is the watchword as our Presidency begins. We aim to manage our brief equitably, transparently and in keeping with the basic tenets of the EU. In other words, we want to do our jobs well. We hope to encourage the EU to speak increasingly with one voice.

We come from the North and offer our expertise concerning our near environment for everyone to use. Our aim is to reform the Northern Dimension into a genuine shared policy concern for the EU, Russia, Norway and Iceland.

We will be focusing on the implementation of road maps of agreed shared areas with Russia during the Finnish Presidency, and we will also be preparing for the renewal of agreements between the EU and Russia. I believe that our EU partners can benefit from Finland’s experience.

European neighbourhood policy is a feasible tool for promoting relations with the EU’s new neighbours. An important target in the EU’s relations with Ukraine is to launch the process for creating a shared free trade area.

We are particularly expecting challenges — and opportunities — in the western Balkans. Finland feels that it is important to give the countries of the western Balkans a European perspective in order to promote stability in the region. Establishing the future of Kosovo is one of the challenges during our Presidency. Finland and the EU strongly support the efforts of the UN’s special envoy, President Martti Ahtisaari, in Kosovo.

Although neighbourly relations are important, we must also look farther afield. Finland will be hosting the Asia-Europe summit, ASEM, in the autumn. Economic cooperation is of increasing importance at this summit, as indeed it is in other external relations. Domestic and foreign policy are increasingly closely intertwined; energy policy is a good example of this.

The challenges and targets of the Finnish Presidency are naturally not limited to the above. The great current challenges facing Europe and the world involve the growth of xenophobia, unemployment, illegal immigration, energy security and the prosperity of Europe in international competition. These matters remain on the EU agenda, and solutions can only be found through cooperation.

I would like to conclude by thanking the Karlspreis Foundation for their valuable work in promoting Europe and European thinking. This conference is a manifestation of that work. I would like to thank the organization and everyone present for being part of it.