Let us restart from the essence of its message to build our Europe of tomorrow
The Treaty of Paris was signed seventy years ago, on 18 April 1951. This epoch-making document, by establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), laid down the key foundations for the greatest project of integration of peoples and nations in European history, making Europe one of the most peaceful, prosperous and stable regions of the world.
The 70th Anniversary of the Treaty of Paris reminds us of the original goals of European integration and the achievements the idea of a united Europe has brought to our continent over the past seven decades. “The Paris Treaty is both legacy and mandate, and as a consequence obliges us to develop further the European integration process. Therefore, we have to ask ourselves what the “coal and steel” of our time are”, says Sandro GOZI, President of UEF and MEP. “What are the problems that we have to face today united as Europeans? This should be the first question discussed with citizens at the Conference on the Future of Europe”, underlines the UEF-President, Sandro GOZI.
Today, Europeans enjoy the highest standard of living ever. However, despite all the achievements and benefits since 1951, the survival of the European project is at stake nowadays. A number of severe problems such as the current public health crisis due to the Covid-19 global pandemic as well as the subsequent difficulties that European national economies are facing, the rise of populism, Brexit, and uncontrolled migration flows have led the EU to experience the most serious crisis of legitimacy in its existence.
As the decision taken in July on the Next Generation EU showed, the EU will only be truly capable of overcoming current and future crises if it is united in solidarity and in sharing the democratic values and the rule of law on which its project is based. In the Conference on the Future of Europe, the UEF strongly calls on the EU's political representatives to find the courage that the Founding Mothers and Fathers had in 1951 and lead the EU to become more united: federal, sovereign and democratic
"The COVID pandemic has offered us an opportunity to respond to the demands of EU citizens for more solidarity, decisive action towards a Health Union, an ambitious climate policy, and a fair digital transition. The legacy of the Treaty of Paris for the present and the future of our continent is to turn this opportunity into a reality by implementing the goal set by the ECSC: a federal Europe. Let us discuss this at the Conference on the Future of Europe!" Sandro GOZI concludes.
Background information
The Treaty of Paris of 1951 founded the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), through which six states (France, Italy, West Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) pooled the production of coal and steel, which were essential for industrial recovery and a prerequisite for possible rearmament. In this way, war between them became not only morally unthinkable, but first and foremost materially impossible. The treaty created a 'High Authority' with the power to make autonomous decisions on the steel sector. The Treaty also provided for a Parliamentary Assembly, a Council of Ministers, a Court of Justice and a Consultative Committee.
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At watershed moments in history, communities need to adapt their institutions to avoid sliding into irreversible decline, thus equipping themselves to govern new circumstances. After the end of the Cold War, the European Union, with the creation of the monetary Union, took a first crucial step towards adapting its institutions; but it was unable to agree on a true fiscal and social policy for the Euro. Later, the Lisbon Treaty strengthened the legislative role of the European Parliament, but again failed to create a strong economic and political Union in order to complete the Euro.
Resulting from that, the EU was not equipped to react effectively to the first major challenges and crises of the XXI century: the financial crash of 2008, the migration flows of 2015- 2016, the rise of national populism, and the 2016 Brexit referendum. This failure also resulted in a strengthening of the role of national governments — as shown, for example, by the current excessive concentration of power within the European Council, whose actions are blocked by opposing national vetoes —, and in the EU’s chronic inability to develop a common foreign policy capable of promoting Europe’s common strategic interests.
Now, however, the tune has changed. In the face of an unprecedented public health crisis and the corresponding collapse of its economies, Europe has reacted with unity and resolve, indicating the way forward for the future of European integration: it laid the foundations by starting with an unprecedented common vaccination strategy, for a “Europe of Health”, and unveiled a recovery plan which will be financed by shared borrowing and repaid by revenue from new EU taxes levied on the digital and financial giants and on polluting industries. This federal plan constitutes a major leap towards the creation of a financial and fiscal Union capable of asserting European sovereignty both domestically and abroad, and as such, it needs to become permanent.
Now, as European citizens, we are eagerly awaiting the start of the Conference on the future of Europe, an event designed to bring together citizens, leading exponents of civil society, NGOs, trade unions, and representatives of national and European institutions, to debate and decide how to go about adapting our institutions in a way that will complete the building of our federal Europe. Their efforts must be underpinned by the clear realization that the fundamental decisions on common borrowing and taxation cannot indefinitely remain in the hands of national governments alone, but must be made together in an effective, transparent and democratic way.
Today, we therefore need and want a strong, legitimate, and properly financed political Union that can tackle the great transnational challenges of our time, acting decisively in a wide range of policy areas, from climate change, growing social inequalities, health and migration to foreign affairs and defense. Moreover, we are calling for stronger pan-European democracy — real European political parties and movements and proper campaigns for European elections, based on the creation of a pan-European constituency and transnational electoral lists headed by the candidates for President of the European Commission.
We are striving for a Union that is both a community of destiny and values, and a model for the new world now taking shape - an example of how countries can live in peace together, build cross-border and social solidarity, and protect human rights, the rule of law, and fundamental freedoms.
We firmly believe that our future lies in a Democratic and Sovereign Europe. And the time to build it is now: now or never. Let us not waste this opportunity.
INITIAL SIGNATORIES
Sandro GOZI
President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF) and Member of the European Parliament (Renew Europe)
Brando BENIFEI
President of the Spinelli Group and Member of the European Parliament (Socialists & Democrats - S&D)
Eva MAYDELL
President of the European Movement International (EMI) and Member of the European Parliament (European People’s Party - EPP)
Esteban GONZÁLEZ PONS
Vice-President of the EPP Group in the European Parliament
Danuta HÜBNER
Former Member of the European Commission, EPP spokesperson in the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament
Domènec RUIZ DEVESA
Vice-President of UEF and S&D spokesperson in the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament
Gabriele BISCHOFF
Vice-President of the Europa-Union Deutschland (EUD), Vice-Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament
Pascal DURAND
Renew Europe Group spokesperson in the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament
Daniel FREUND
Member of the European Parliament (Greens/EFA) and Representative in the Executive Board of the Conference on the Future of Europe
Damian BOESELAGER
Greens/EFA spokesperson in the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament
Dimitrios PAPADIMOULIS
Vice-President of the European Parliament (The Left – GUE/NGL)
Fabio Massimo CASTALDO
Former Vice-President of the European Parliament (Non-attached Members)
FIND HERE THE LIST OF SIGNATORIES
Download the English version here
- This appeal has been published in the following media and daily newspapers: El Mundo, La Croix, EU News, Euractiv Italia (1), El País, Euractiv ES, La Vanguardia, Informacion, SWI, EURACTIV Italia (2), Il Secolo XIX, Il Messagero, Frankfurter Rundschau and more.
It can be republished under CC-BY - Attribution 2.5 Generic
Gender equality is a core principle of the European Union; a lot has been done to put it in practice but we are certainly not there yet. In business, politics and society as a whole, the Union must eliminate inequalities and to promote equality. This year’s theme for International Women’s Day, "Founding Mothers of Europe", commemorates all the visionary female leaders who inspired the creation of the European Union.
On this day, we want to show a new way of being European by illustrating and enhancing the role of the EU female pioneers, a diverse group of people who worked tirelessly and inspired the European project with shared ideals: a peaceful, fair, united and prosperous Europe.
Today, we commemorate figures such as Louise Weiss, the journalist who fought tenaciously for women's right to vote, the reconciliation and disarmament of Germany and France and whose ideas contributed to the construction of Europe. Simon Veil, the first president of the European Parliament (1979-1982) who developed the institution’s external relations by taking positions on major international issues, and even by engaging with third countries. Or Ursula Hirschmann, who organised the first meeting of the European Federalist Movement and "Femmes pour l'Europe'' believing that the European project needed a wider participation of women to achieve a true democracy in Europe.
Women and men are not equally represented across the European institutions and national governments. Women are most often in charge of ministries, delegations and permanent or parliamentary committees relating to social, educational, cultural, or rights-related matters, but are rare in the prestigious and regalian domains of economic affairs, foreign affairs and defense. Ursula von der Leyen, first female president of the European Commission is still an exception.
Significant strides in policies and programs cemented our dedication to improving the status of women and girls worldwide, and we must uphold our commitment to protect their rights. We need to keep addressing gender-based violence, gender stereotypes, gender gaps in the labour market, give equal participation across different sectors of the economy and achieving gender balance in decision-making using different tools like the EU Action Plan 2020-2025.
We appeal to all Member States to turn the current momentum into action, also using the opportunity of the resources of Next Generation EU to invest in reforms that make women's empowerment in our society truly possible. We can achieve sustainable development only by continuing to place gender equality and women's empowerment at the heart of our work and the EU economy. We want to encourage a new way of conceiving Europe by recounting these women’s lives and by looking for the soul and the sense of responsibility that Europe seems to have lost.
News from our sections on International Women's Day
Our newborn section of UEF Greece organised interviews with the main Greek women Politicians from different political families (Former Ministers and MEP Marietta Giannakou , Anna Diamantopoulou, Louka Katseli and Professor of Medicine Xara Spyliopoulou). It was a unique event. During the 4 hours long online event the main topics addressed were: “Mothers of Europe”, “Conference on the Future of Europe” and the role of federalists as well as other key issues for the post COVID-19 period.
More information-video : https://uef-greece.gr/category/news/
The UEF welcomes the reaching of an agreement that finally opens the opportunity to work for a new Europe together with the citizens. For the forces that believe in a federal, sovereign and democratic Europe, this is the time for commitment and mobilisation.
Welcoming with relief the long-awaited launch of the Conference on the Future of Europe, the UEF underlines the importance of the historical moment and the political challenges that the European Union is facing and recalls the need for the Conference to be a moment of confrontation to bring together citizens, leading exponents, NGOs, trade unions, and representatives of national and European institutions, to debate and decide how to go about adapting our institutions in a way that will complete the building of a federal, sovereign and democratic Europe.
"At watershed moments in history, communities, to avoid sliding into an irreversible decline, need to be able to adapt their institutions, equipping them to govern new circumstances" says Sandro Gozi, President of UEF and MEP. "This is what we need to do today in the European Union: making the Next Generation EU facility permanent and creating a federal budget, so that the EU can share fiscal sovereignty with the Member States; and acquiring new competences, also through extending the ordinary legislative procedure, in the field of health, economic policy, foreign policy and defence, to make Europe a global leader in the defence of fundamental values and the rule of law, a model for a socially sustainable ecological transition and a global player for a new multilateralism."
"This is why the Conference must be able to discuss without taboos not only which European policies need to be strengthened, but also which treaty reforms are needed to equip the EU with the necessary tools to act effectively and incisively", continues Domenec Ruiz Devesa, UEF Vice-President and MEP.
"In this regard, the reform of the European electoral system will also be fundamental, in order to uniform it, to create pan-European constituencies with transnational lists, starting the birth of a real European political space and public debate", concludes Sandro Gozi. "Now is the time for debate and action, also to overcome the limits of the Conference's governance, which the Council wanted to weaken with the principle of consensus to reach conclusions. We need a common front of all the forces that believe in a sovereign and democratic Europe, in the European Parliament, in national parliaments and governments, in civil society. It starts a process that we believe should lead to building the federal Europe we need. And the time to do it is now: now or never. Let us not waste this opportunity."
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Today the European Parliament gave the green light to the Conference on the Future of Europe. The UEF welcomes the reaching of an agreement that finally opens the opportunity to work for a new Europe together with the citizens. For the forces that believe in a federal, sovereign and democratic Europe, this is the time for commitment and mobilization.
Welcoming with relief the long-awaited launch of the Conference on the Future of Europe, the UEF underlines the importance of the historical moment and the political challenges that the European Union is facing and recalls the need for the Conference to be a moment of confrontation to bring together citizens, leading exponents, NGOs, trade unions, and representatives of national and European institutions, to debate and decide how to go about adapting our institutions in a way that will complete the building of a federal, sovereign and democratic Europe.
"At watershed moments in history, communities, to avoid sliding into an irreversible decline, need to be able to adapt their institutions, equipping them to govern new circumstances" says Sandro Gozi, President of UEF and MEP. "This is what we need to do today in the European Union: making the Next Generation EU facility permanent and creating a federal budget, so that the EU can share fiscal sovereignty with the Member States; and acquiring new competences, also through extending the ordinary legislative procedure, in the field of health, economic policy, foreign policy and defense, to make Europe a global leader in the defense of fundamental values and the rule of law, a model for a socially sustainable ecological transition and a global player for a new multilateralism".
"This is why the Conference must be able to discuss without taboos not only which European policies need to be strengthened, but also which treaty reforms are needed to equip the EU with the necessary tools to act effectively and incisively", continues Domènec Ruiz Devesa, UEF Vice-President and MEP.
"In this regard, the reform of the European electoral system will also be fundamental, in order to uniform it, to create pan-European constituencies with transnational lists, starting the birth of a real European political space and public debate", concludes Sandro Gozi. "Now is the time for debate and action, also to overcome the limits of the Conference's governance, which the Council wanted to weaken with the principle of consensus to reach conclusions. We need a common front of all the forces that believe in a sovereign and democratic Europe, in the European Parliament, in national parliaments and governments, in civil society. It starts a process that we believe should lead to building the federal Europe we need. And the time to do it is now: now or never. Let us not waste this opportunity".
"I express my deep concern about the recent developments on the Conference on the Future of Europe, following the recently published revised Council position, which is object of discussions in the negotiations between the EU institutions in these hours”.
“While I very much believe that the Conference should start immediately, at the same time the Council document contains serious shortcomings in terms of governance, mandate, and contents. The envisaged methods for direct participation from citizens appear insufficient, and it is inappropriate, at the very least, excluding from the discussion possible suggestions for Treaty change. The outcome of the Conference should be reflected in a report to be discussed by all EU Institutions on an equal and balanced manner and not by the European Council only."
“The Conference on the Future of Europe shall be about citizens and their voices in Europe, but inadequate involvement of citizens in the process, offering them the chance to provide input or evaluate output in a meaningful manner, would seriously risk jeopardising the whole aim of the Conference."
“Important issues also emerge on the leadership of the Conference. In this respect, it is imperative that the European Parliament, being the only institution enjoying direct expression from the citizens, occupies a central role. I believe that all political groups shall be represented adequately in the body that decides on fundamental details on the way the Conference is organised and how citizens will actually be involved."
The Board of the Spinelli Group is gathering on Wednesday 10 February to discuss its official position on the matter and will submit its considerations on the Joint Declaration and the Conference on the Future of Europe to the institutions’ negotiators and the press.
"I express my deep concern about the recent developments on the Conference on the Future of Europe, following the recently published revised Council position, which is object of discussions in the negotiations between the EU institutions in these hours”.
“While I very much believe that the Conference should start immediately, at the same time the Council document contains serious shortcomings in terms of governance, mandate, and contents. The envisaged methods for direct participation from citizens appear insufficient, and it is inappropriate, at the very least, excluding from the discussion possible suggestions for Treaty change. The outcome of the Conference should be reflected in a report to be discussed by all EU Institutions on an equal and balanced manner and not by the European Council only."
“The Conference on the Future of Europe shall be about citizens and their voices in Europe, but inadequate involvement of citizens in the process, offering them the chance to provide input or evaluate output in a meaningful manner, would seriously risk jeopardising the whole aim of the Conference."
“Important issues also emerge on the leadership of the Conference. In this respect, it is imperative that the European Parliament, being the only institution enjoying direct expression from the citizens, occupies a central role. I believe that all political groups shall be represented adequately in the body that decides on fundamental details on the way the Conference is organised and how citizens will actually be involved."
The Board of the Spinelli Group is gathering on Wednesday 10 February to discuss its official position on the matter and will submit its considerations on the Joint Declaration and the Conference on the Future of Europe to the institutions’ negotiators and the press.
“The Conference was not meant to be a general debate on topics that we already discuss every day, but to design a real and courageous future for our Europe and for us European citizens!”, states UEF President Sandro GOZI.
In a meeting of the EU ambassadors, the Member States adopted their revised position on the Conference on the Future of Europe on 3 February. The document was proposed by the Portuguese Presidency.
"It seems that the Council does not understand: the Conference on the Future of Europe, as envisaged by the European Parliament is more necessary than ever. The methods for direct citizen participation are disappointing", assesses GOZI. "Where have the citizens’ agoras that the Parliament proposed gone?" asks GOZI. "There also seems to be a 'Chinese wall' between the Conference and Article 48 on treaty revision".
The Council document includes a tripartite presidency of the Conference, consisting of the President of the European Parliament, the President of the European Commission and the President of the Council. However, the day-to-day business would be in the hands of an executive committee in which the three institutions would also be equally represented and take decisions by consensus.
"Clearly, the Council is making a mistake by not being bold enough on the governance, functioning of the Conference and new methods of citizens participation. This is not what we federalists were looking for", says GOZI. "Unfortunately, this seems to be the only possible way out after the Council refused to agree to the solution proposed by the European Parliament", regrets GOZI. "Two are the most important things now: to make sure that it’s the Parliament's representative in the executive committee who leads the work of the Conference and, more specifically, that of the Plenary. But above all, we need to keep advocating for the outcome of the Conference to be totally open in terms of possible new policies and Treaty revisions", concludes GOZI.
Despite the widespread conception of Darwinism as the survival of the fittest, the famous English naturalist’s message was actually very different, if not the opposite. In nature, only those species that adapt can survive. It is the same with institutions: they either adapt or become irrelevant.
The EU institutions haven’t been reformed since the Lisbon Treaty over a decade ago, resulting in Europeans being limited in what they can do, or governments sometimes being forced to take action outside the EU treaties. This situation cannot last much longer, which is why I believe that the EU is having its own ‘Darwinian’ moment.
Since failing to ratify the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, the EU has been living through an existential crisis, one where each additional crisis - the financial crash of 2008, the migration crisis of 2014 and the Brexit referendum in 2016 – has further limited the construction of a stronger Europe. Instead, we have seen the advance of intergovernmentalism and the chronic inability to develop a common foreign policy capable of promoting our common strategic interests.
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic reached our borders and spread across our societies. Faced with the collapse of our economies and an unprecedented health challenge, Europe stood united, showing a new resolve to react and adapt. In July, the 27 Member States reached a historic agreement: a €750bn plan to kickstart the Union’s recovery.
The recovery plan would be financed by shared borrowing and repaid by new EU own resources: a first step towards the creation of a federal Union capable of asserting European sovereignty both domestically and abroad. This unity persisted when Poland and Hungary attempted to block the adoption of the Multiannual Financial Framework and the recovery plan, over fears that EU funds could be linked to respecting the Rule of Law.
Our union is, above all, one built on common values and fundamental freedoms. The management of the Coronavirus crisis at EU level has shown the way forward for the future of European integration. As European citizens, we need a strong Union, capable of acting rapidly on a wide array of policy areas, ranging from health and fiscal policy to defence and taxation.
A new human security strategy, that protects human rights and fundamental freedoms needs to be placed at the centre of Europe’s transformation into a truly transnational political space. Within this new context, the Union must pursue - with strength - its digital and ecological transitions. The EU should also strengthen its role on the global scene. It needs to redress strategic imbalances in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, formulate a strategy against foreign interference in our democratic processes and create a more humane migration policy.
It should also renew the Transatlantic Alliance, based on European strategic autonomy and look to restore multilateralism in the international arena. However, the affirmation of a powerful Europe will require the creation of a genuine political Union, fully democratic, with the establishment of a genuine transnational polity. In order to survive in an increasingly unpredictable world, we need a stronger Union to ‘take back control’ of those transnational issues where national governments have lost control and become powerless.
This requires a rethink and change of Europe’s relation with power: a very difficult but necessary debate as the Union was conceived after World War II as a counterpoint to national powers. Nowadays, what we need is a powerful Europe capable of facing challenges such as new security threats, foreign interference in our democratic process and unfair global industry competition. The new political Union must go beyond the classic pattern of association between States.
“L’union fait la force” (Unity makes strength) is not enough: we must work for a more legitimate EU conceived as a ‘community of solidarity’. The EU should become a new transnational entity, where the notions of sovereignty and power are no longer based on Westphalian, nation-state-centred, conceptions. Instead, it should be built on a spirit of solidarity between European people and where a new dimension of direct and participatory democracy is developed, as a complement to, and in synergy with, representative democracy.
That is why the Portuguese Presidency of the Council needs to start the Conference on the Future of Europe now. Crucially, the Conference will be the best way to bring together citizens, civil society representatives, NGOs, trade unions, representatives of national and European institutions, to build a new political union that is more effective and legitimate than ever before.
This article, Future of Europe: The EU’s Darwinian moment, was published on January 27, 2021 on "The Parliament Magazine" and written by Sandro Gozi.
The original article can be found here.
Sandro Gozi, UEF President, before today's European Parliament's Plenary Session, welcomed the European Commission's President, Ursula von der Leyen's confirmation and commitment to a more vigorous implementation and enforcement of Rule of Law Regulation in the EU from January 2021.
"I don't know whether there is a vaccine or antidote for populism and nationalism, but I am convinced that democracy and the Rule of Law are as vital as the air we breathe—and there is a democratic emergency within our Union. In situations of emergency, measures are needed. Therefore, we call for immediate implementation of the regulation on the Rule of Law", UEF President Sandro Gozi says. "This is an unprecedented step forward and, as federalists, one of our main goals to be achieved. The EU member states must implement the Treaties, the European law, and that the EU institutions have to ensure that EU Member states fulfil their obligations without postponements, without suspensions, without further intentions or guidelines".
"By defending the Treaty obligations before the Council, we are not only defending the Rule of Law within the Union and the Rule of Law of the Union, but we are also protecting the freedoms of 447 million European citizens," remarked Sandro Gozi, in his speech, addressing the President of the European Commission.
"We must put an end to the unanimous decisions and the threats of veto. This is only one more reason to start the Conference on the future of Europe as soon as possible," UEF President Sandro Gozi concluded earlier today.