Toespraak Portugese minister van Buitenlandse Zaken over globalisering (en) - Main contents

"The European concern: to overcome the challenge of globalisation"

The presidency's declaration during the plenary session of the European Parliament, on

12 to 15 November 2007

Manuel Lobo Antunes, secretary of state for European affairs

Globalisation is not just a phenomenon we have to analyse in terms of economic

consequences and technological implications. For you, honourable members of the

European Parliament, for the ministers of the Council of the European Union, for all of

us, politicians, it is essentially a question of political nature.

It is about people who lose their jobs, regions in crisis, economic sectors that disappear,

new security and environmental threats. But it is also about new job opportunities, new

production sectors and lower prices for a wide range of products, contributing for a

better allocation of financial resources and commerce growth in both the goods and

services areas.

Globalisation increases, as never seen before in the history of mankind, the flux of

ideas, the contact among peoples. Perspectives for enrichment are great, in economic as

well as cultural terms, but so are the risks of new instabilities of various kinds, on a

planetary scale.

We are facing the challenge of giving form to this new interdependence, which is

becoming more fluid, in an ever smaller world.

Above all, facing and regulating globalisation is a decisive question for our

democracies, even for the concept of effective democracy - knowing whether we are

capable of keeping, in the hands of our people and our elected representatives, the

political control of fundamental options concerning economic governance and a whole

range of other aspects in our lives.

I am convinced that, in several critical areas, we can only be efficient if we, in Europe,

are capable of giving new collective political answers to the most serious problems of

our time, such as economic growth and job creation, environment preservation, energy,

migrations and fight against terrorism.

The EU has been renewing its internal policies, in order to ensure competitiveness and a

just and sustainable development. Reinforcement of social cohesion and respect for the

environment should guide economic reforms. Investment in research, innovation and

education must be the central motor for growth and employment.

But we are not alone. It would be an irresponsible act to close ourselves to the outside

world, convinced that selfishness is the efficient path to follow. There are neither

efficient walls nor fortresses in this world. We have to work together with other

countries and regions so that we can all collect the benefits. Stability, freedom, security

and prosperity can only be consistent and long-lasting if they are shared.

This is Europe's calling. We must lead and shape globalisation in accordance with our

principles and values - facing the outside world, with a universalistic attitude, as it

happened during the noblest moments of our common history.

Together, the EU and its Member States have shown they are capable of coping with

common problems and challenges, making the most of their 50 year experience of

integration. The new treaty - the Treaty of Lisbon - gives us institutional conditions of

greater efficacy and transparency so that the Union is able to accomplish its role in the

world.

The challenge is to secure and reinforce what we have reached so far and find ways to

defend our interests and project our common values beyond our borders.

The revised Lisbon Strategy has supplied Europe with the framework to formulate the

answer to this challenge. The launching of a new governance cycle gives us the

opportunity to reflect upon the path we want to follow.

The Commission's communication we are debating here today seems like an excellent

starting point for debate, and has already become a reference for the discussion among

heads of state and government at the Lisbon informal meeting held on 19 October.

At the Council, our work is based on this document. We are seeking to establish a set of

reports that may contribute to the preparation of the Lisbon Strategy's new cycle. This

week's ECOFIN Council already adopted conclusions; the Competitiveness Council of

22 November will also approve some reports and the Employment Council of 5 and 6

December anticipates the adoption of conclusions on the future of the European

employment strategy, in the context of the Lisbon Strategy's new cycle.

Other formations of the Council have been addressing themes that are relevant to the

preparation of the new cycle.

I can confirm that, essentially, we agree with the Commission: the revised Lisbon

Strategy must continue to be the adequate framework for the answer Europe has to find

to deal with the main challenges we face, especially globalisation.

Europe is making significant progress. The goals that were set out and the four priority

areas - employment, knowledge and innovation, business environment and energy and

climate change - chosen in 2006 are still adequate. The new cycle must, in its broad

terms, preserve the necessary stability to consolidate results; at the same time, it is

important to introduce adjustments and improvements so that the revised Lisbon

Strategy is capable of accomplishing its full potential.

The acceleration of reforms must be our priority, while taking advantage of the

dynamics created by the progress already achieved, so that our economies can become

more vigorous. The EU has global responsibilities and needs to reinforce its preparation

to face globalisation. It must have a coherent and determined strategic reaction on a

global level.

We must keep a strong commitment in the implementation, on a national level, for

example, of measures that will allow us to deal better with the problems resulting from

demographic alterations, with the quality of public finances and their sustainability in

the long term, with the labour market, employment, social cohesion, with our domestic

market, competitiveness, research and innovation, energy and climate changes,

education and training.

In parallel, the Community Lisbon Programme has an important role to carry out in the

new cycle, in order to guarantee, in a more efficient way, the necessary coherence of

reforms. The Council's and Parliament's ownership must be reinforced and the

exchange of good practices among Member States must be deepened.

The migration phenomenon has, in this context of globalisation, a fundamental role, by

making a contribution in terms of increasing the growth potential and facilitating

adjustments. According to a recent report presented this week to the Council, about the

effects of this reality on the mobility of the work factor, demographic growth in the

European Union is ever more supported by migratory fluxes. The report highlighted the

fact that these migratory fluxes decisively contribute to the reinforcement of the

necessary flexibility to face shocks and to compensate low levels of intra-regional

mobility.

In this globalised context, the external dimension of the Lisbon Strategy must by

reinforced and deepened, projecting the EU's political and economic objectives, as well

as its social and environmental standards, beyond its borders.

As you know, this was the issue discussed at the informal meeting, during the debate

held by the heads of government and state, where we especially expanded the themes

concerning the instability of financial markets and climate change.

This political debate, which counted with the participation of this assembly's president,

was interesting and stimulating, and reinforced our faith in the future.

Just as Prime Minister José Sócrates has already pointed out in this Parliament, Europe

has the conditions and the obligation to lead the globalisation process, taking advantage

of new opportunities that have been created, including those in the area of ideas and

culture interchange. On reinforcing the relationship among peoples and the

interdependency among nations, the EU decisively contributes to world peace and

stability.

Europe has the political and institutional conditions to consistently meet the challenges

of globalisation, in economic, social and environmental terms, thus influencing the

globalisation process. We need a stronger strategic cooperation with our partners, in

order to develop a new global agenda that combines the mutual opening of markets, the

improvement of environmental, social, financial, and intellectual property standards,

and the need to support the institutional capacity of developing countries.

Just as was announced by Prime Minister José Sócrates at the end of the Lisbon

informal meeting, a EU declaration on globalisation will be approved during the

European Summit on 13 and 14 December. This declaration will be a clear sign, before

all citizens and the world, of the European leaders' determination and commitment to

encourage the Union's capacity to influence the globalisation agenda and find the

necessary answers.

The challenges we face are both difficult and stimulating.

The presidency will continue to be interested in facing these challenges. We rely, as we

always have, on the support of the European Parliament to promote and develop an

effort emanating from the EU and its Member States that is devised on a global level,

and which will allow Europe to assume its responsibilities in a world context and meet

future challenges successfully.

Sometimes we tend to forget what Europe means to so many people in this globalised

world. The images of fainted immigrants on our shores are a cruel reminder of that

reality - how privileged we are here in Europe. Europe has become a bastion of hope in

the possibility of building a model that combines freedom, economic growth, social

justice and environment preservation into a logic of partnership, cooperation and shared

responsibility. It isn't just our success, as Europeans, which is at stake. "A stronger

Union for a better world" - is the motto of our presidency, as you know. And, in fact,

we sincerely believe that Europe must have a crucial role in the construction of a more

just and balanced world.