THE VENTOTENE POLITICAL DECLARATION "FOR MORE AND A BETTER EUROPE"
Ventotene, Sunday 1 September 2024
Having regard to the Ventotene Manifesto of 1941;
Having regard to the Resolutions of the Hague Congress of 1948;
Having regard to the Schuman Declaration of 1950;
Having regard to the Manifestos of the Spinelli Group of 2018, 2021, and 2022;
Having regard to the Action Committee for the United States of Europe launched by Jean Monnet in 1955, relaunched in 1985, and again on 18 January 2024;
Having regard to the European Movement International´s “Manifesto for European Elections 2024” and “Working Together for Europe”;
Having regard to the Action Committee´s Joint Manifesto of 7 May 2024;
Europhobic and Eurosceptic political forces keep increasing their power in Member States, and in the European Institutions. Putin, who continues his war of aggression in Ukraine, while Trump is attempting to return to the presidency of the United States, supports some of these parties. Only a more united and stronger Union, including in foreign policy and defence, and taxation, among other fields, and better decision-making (end of unanimity vote in the Council, more powers for the European Parliament, a true European executive) will Europe be able to
face these huge challenges.
The 2024 European elections have shown a dangerous growth of nationalist forces - which advocate, in many cases, an illiberal conception of democracy and aim to reduce the European Union’s powers, competencies, and potential; but at the same time within the European Parliament a strong pro-European majority remains.
We therefore welcome the election of Ursula Von Der Leyen as President of the European Commission, which took place, as we hoped in the Manifesto of 7 May 2024, in accordance to the Spitzenkandidaten principle.
In the European Parliament, the pro-European forces have succeeded to:
- Gather around an ambitious political programme for the legislature, in line with the goal of the EU's strategic autonomy;
- Persuade Ursula Von Der Leyen of the need for “an ambitious agenda for the reform of the Treaties” (on which she stated that Commission and Parliament will have to work together), both to cope with enlargement and to implement the political programme she outlined in her speech of 18th July 2024;
We likewise appreciate that the President of the European Commission, in seeking consensus for her re-election, has been able to maintain as common ground for building her pro-European coalition the shared principle of the will to strengthen the European Union, as well as support for Ukraine's war of resistance.
Now, however, as the 10th legislature gets underway, it is time for action. There is not much time left for Europe to express its enormous potential. All the policies announced by Ursula Von Der Leyen - to counter the risk of decline of the European economic-industrial system, to increase the EU international relevance and to avoid a crisis of its social model - cannot be made without attributing more competencies and powers to the European institutions, and without creating new decision-making mechanisms and new ways of financing the European budget. – i.e., without an ambitious reform of the Treaties.
We therefore call on:
- The full implementation of the Letta report on the Internal Market; and the forthcoming Draghi report on Competitiveness on the basis of its known elements , including the permanent creation of EU bonds for the financing of the Green and digital transition and defence investments; and new own resources;
- The establishment of a European Defence System;
- A five-year, and larger post-2027 Multi-Annual Financial Framework, as a necessary political instrument to assure European public goods, a fair convergence between the regions and the members states as a pre-condition for the competitiveness, a shared prosperity so that no one is no left behind, and a common policies framework in view of enlargement negotiations;
- the approval of a new European Electoral Act with transnational lists;
- the European Commission, in view of the "ambitious agenda" that it will have to present to the European Council on the reform of the Treaties with the contribution of the European Parliament, to start from the work done in the 9th Legislature by the European Parliament following the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe (Plenary Resolution of 22 November 2023);
- the European Commission to support the convening of a Convention, as asked by the European Parliament, so that a true European public debate can be developed and the general interest can emerge in the face of problems that Europe must face as a community of destiny;
- the European Council to act swiftly on the proposal of the European Parliament, in line with article 48 of the Treaty of the European Union, and agree to organise a Convention for Treaty change;
Signatories
- Domènec Ruiz Devesa, Former MEP, President of the Union of European Federalists
- Guy Verhofstadt, Former MEP, President of European Movement International
- Philippe Laurette, President of Association Jean Monnet
- Christelle Savall, President of the Young European Federalists
- Sandro Gozi, MEP, President of the Spinelli Group
Witnesses
- Stefano Castagnoli, President of Istituto di Studi Federalisti Altiero Spinelli, President of Movimento Federalista Europeo
- Josep Borrell Fontelles, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security, Vice President of the Commission Former President of the European Parliament
- Thijs Reuten, MEP, Spinelli Group member
- Klaus Welle, Former Secretary General of the European People´s Party, Former Secretary General of the European Parliament, Chair of the Academic Council Wilfred Maertens Centre for European Studies
- Giuseppe Pepe, Vice-Mayor of Ventotene
- Martì Grau Segu, Head of Service and Curator House Jean Monnet
- Roberto Sommella, President of Associazione Nuova Europa, Cittadino onorario di Ventotene
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