Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-02-17-Speech-4-102"
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"en.20000217.4.4-102"2
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"In its communication on its strategic objectives for 2000-2005, the Commission repeats that Europe needs to become a ‘global actor’ capable of speaking with a strong voice in the world.
What should this global actor’s objective be? Doubtless our citizens would say something along the lines of ‘to defend the countries of Europe better’, since that is the traditional and primordial purpose of political associations. And yet this phrase is nowhere to be seen. All we find are vague phrases about ‘strategic partnerships’ and the new prospects for trade which the complete integration of Europe would apparently bring with it. The omission of this principal objective is highly revealing. It demonstrates one of the main flaws in the European Union, a little-known, almost always implicit flaw, but one which goes a long way towards explaining our citizens’ loss of interest.
There is a highly revealing passage on this point in the work programme for the year 2000 attached to the strategic guidelines. Addressing the fundamental question of relations with the United States, the Commission mentions just one priority: ‘we will endeavour to reduce and eliminate as far as possible the disputes in transatlantic trade’ (page 4). While we are on the subject, where one would expect a firm declaration of intent to defend European interests in the numerous trade conflicts under way, one merely finds the desire to eliminate conflict, which hardly sounds like determination on the part of the Commission to fight its corner.
How strange that the Commission should lose its instinct for self-preservation just as Europe is integrating. I think there are three reasons for this: 1) in their endeavour to transcend the nation states, the European institutions have lost touch with the people and, in losing touch with the people, they have become putty in the hands of foreign interests; 2) having lost touch with the people, the men and women working in these institutions have started to become used to reasoning not as the sole champions of the people, but as international officials in charge of regulating a global system; 3) integration may afford economies of scale and productivity gains; but it also causes far more to be lost because, when it breaks nations, it breaks subtle expressions of solidarity and, with them, the willingness to present a united front."@en1
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