COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION latest

 

Press material Wednesday 19 April 2023

● Council of the EU   19/04/2023 22:41 | Press release | Sudan: Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the European Union on the latest developments   The European Union (EU) and its Member States strongly condemn the ongoing fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, which threatens the safety and security of the people of Sudan as well as the unity and stability of the country. The outbreak of hostilities undermines efforts to restore the transition towards a civilian-led democratic government. It also risks regional destabilisation. The EU deplores the loss of lives and the violations of international law, including international human rights law and international humanitarian law, calling on all actors to comply with international humanitarian law and implement an immediate cessation of hostilities without pre-conditions. The EU calls on all actors to allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access, as well as to protect civilians and ensure safety of humanitarian personnel. The fighting must end to guarantee their protection and allow space for dialogue and mediation. In this context, the EU supports efforts for an immediate cessation of hostilities, which should serve as a first step to a permanent ceasefire agreement to be negotiated urgently, also in view of the upcoming Eid-al-Fitr celebration. The EU recalls the importance of full respect for the integrity of diplomatic staff and premises under the Vienna Convention, and strongly appeals to the competent authorities to fully protect their security. The security of EU citizens must be ensured by all actors. The EU will continue to actively engage with key partners to ensure that all parties give priority to silencing the guns, ending violence, de-escalating the situation and resolving political differences through dialogue. External actors should refrain from fueling the conflict. The EU welcomes and supports collective regional and international coordinated mediation efforts, including those of the UN, AU, IGAD and the League of Arab States, which are essential to bring Sudan back to the path of peace and stability and to respect the aspirations of the people in Sudan for a peaceful, stable and democratic future. The EU reaffirms its steadfast support and solidarity with the people of Sudan, especially women and youth who led a peaceful revolution three years ago. Their aspirations and requests for a better future will not be forgotten.

Press material Wednesday 19 April 2023

● European Council   19/04/2023 17:49 | Speech | Speech by President Charles Michel at the Good Friday Agreement 25th anniversary conference   Brother Roger of Taizé, a Christian leader who devoted his life to reconciling different Christian denominations, once said: “Strength and courage is when someone can shake hands and listen to the other, despite past divisions.” It was precisely this strength and courage, twenty-five years ago, that led to the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. A remarkable — and rare — achievement that largely ended three decades of fighting in Northern Ireland. Especially rare when we look at the arc of human history, full of unsolved conflicts that continue to divide peoples, leading to entrenched suffering generation after generation. Yet, right here in Northern Ireland — against all odds — a peace deal was reached and a new hope took root that day. It was not the end of a journey, but a new beginning, ending armed conflict and securing the rights of all people in Northern Ireland. That is why we come together today to mark the anniversary of this historic deal. It is our duty to keep the spirit of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement alive, just as it was born 25 years ago. We pay tribute, first and foremost, to the people of this land. The countless unsung heroes. Yes, I call them heroes, the visionaries who imagined a society reconciled with the past and able to look to the future. A future forged in peace, free from violence. All the people of this land willing to embark on a journey towards reconciliation. The politicians, the treaties, the agreements — they are all crucial to the process. But it is the will of the people that is the steely backbone — the vision — for what Northern Ireland can be. Thousands of unnamed people over many years worked to unlock this Agreement, in politics, public life, religion, and civil society. The full story of this peace agreement cannot be told without acknowledging their brave contributions. Without the will of the people, the Good Friday Agreement would be just another paper in the museum of failed peace deals. And I’d like to pay particular tribute to the women of Northern Ireland, like Betty Williams and Mairead Maguire. And of course we can never forget the enormous contributions of the visionary leaders. Leaders like John Hume, David Trimble, Bertie Ahern, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, George Mitchell, and so many others. Their efforts, your efforts, ensured that the people’s will did not fall on barren ground. So today, we must protect the gains of this Agreement and stay true to its principles — of peace, respect, tolerance. Because this is the best way to knit together a society that is stronger and more united on a land that is shared together. In the European Union, we also know the importance of the strong backing of our citizens. Without the support of the citizens, our Union would not have seen the light of day. Enemies who once fought each other on European soil agreed to create shared institutions on that very same soil. To work together to build trust and mutual understanding on a path towards reconciliation. When the UK and Ireland joined the EU together, in 1973, they subscribed to this common vision. And over the decades, the contacts between British, Irish and EU officials, at all levels, helped to cement mutual trust and understanding. The European project, one could say, helped to prepare the ground for the seed of peace to take root in Northern Ireland. It focused on improving the daily lives of people, on building alliances, not on identity and politics; it focused on practical issues — like agriculture, transport, economic cooperation but also rule of law and citizens’ rights. Our goal was to foster our diverse identities, while still uniting around these differences. And to build a strong single market. Not to erase borders, but to make them less divisive, less important, less burdensome. We also know that transforming a vision into reality doesn’t happen overnight. It requires a lot of hard work. Reconciliation, trust, and cooperation are not the work of hours and days but months, years, and decades. And it takes willingness to compromise, to step across divides and to take risks. In Europe, we do not pretend to have all the answers. But we strive to provide a space to come together — and to work together — on a common vision for our common destiny. In this same spirit, the EU was quick to respond after the first ceasefires in Northern Ireland in 1994. The European Commission President Jacques Delors simply asked: ‘what can the EU do to help build lasting peace?’ This led to the creation of the EU PEACE Programmes which have helped to foster peace and reconciliation between communities since 1995. The EU has also contributed to a range of infrastructure projects — like, for instance, developing the successful Waterfront area here in Belfast — and many social projects, including those aimed at victims of ‘The Troubles’, on both sides of the Irish border. In the EU, we remain fully committed to fostering peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. It is no secret that the United Kingdom’s sovereign decision to leave the EU posed serious new challenges. For instance, the complexities at the border. For the EU, our main goal has always been to make sure that Brexit does not undermine the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. And that it does not resurrect the borders — and the divisions — of the past. That is why we have always worked to build trust and to find collective and, at times, imaginative solutions. And to move forward in a way that listens to — and respects — the communities in Northern Ireland. The recently agreed Windsor Framework does precisely that. It provides a good opportunity to build a more positive and stable relationship between the EU and the UK. To work better together, to build trust together, anchored in our shared interests and our common fundamental values. I think it will provide greater certainty and predictability for the people and businesses in Northern Ireland. It is you — the people of this fine land — that must decide your future, together. This is the only way to build a stable and prosperous future. Your country has changed beyond recognition over the last quarter of a century. Today you have peace in Northern Ireland and you have something more. Something that can only be achieved through peace. You have greater prosperity. For this reason, it has become a model for solving other entrenched conflicts across the world, some of them in Europe. The Belfast Agreement also represents the product — and the high point — of another era. An era when the values of liberal democracies were preeminent in the world. In the past 25 years, the world has changed dramatically: the September 11th attacks, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the global economic crisis, the climate emergency, COVID-19. And now Russia’s war against Ukraine, where we see the tragic consequences of war. In these turbulent times, two great allies like the United Kingdom and the European Union, we need each other more than ever. We stand together to tackle common challenges like climate change. We stand together to uphold human dignity and human rights. In this increasingly dangerous world, Northern Ireland and the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement are a powerful symbol of what our shared values can achieve. Let’s continue to build on this unstoppable belief in the potential of peace, for more freedom, more prosperity, and more democracy for the people of Northern Ireland and for all people across the world. Thank you.

Press material Tuesday 18 April 2023

● Council of the EU   18/04/2023 17:16 | Press release | Chips Act: Council and European Parliament strike provisional deal   The Council and the European Parliament have reached today a provisional political agreement on the regulation to strengthen Europe's semiconductor ecosystem, better known as the 'Chips Act'. The deal is expected to create the conditions for the development of an industrial base that can double the EU’s global market share in semiconductors from 10% to at least 20% by 2030. "This agreement is off utmost importance for the green and digital transition while securing the EU’s resilience in turbulent times. The new rules represent a real revolution for Europe in the key sector of semiconductors. A swift implementation of today’s agreement will transform; our dependency into market leadership; our vulnerability into sovereignty; our expenditure into investment. The Chips act puts Europe in the first line of cutting-edge technologies which are essential for our green and digital transitions." Ebba Busch, Swedish Minister for Energy, Business and Industry and Deputy Prime Minister The three pillars The Commission proposed three main lines of action, or pillars, to achieve the Chips’ Act objectives The “Chips for Europe Initiative”, to support large-scale technological capacity building A framework to ensure security of supply and resilience by attracting investment A Monitoring and Crisis Response system to anticipate supply shortages and provide responses in case of crisis. The Chips for Europe Initiative is expected to mobilise €43 billion in public and private investments, with €3,3 billion coming from the EU budget. These actions will be primarily implemented through a Chips Joint Undertaking, a public-private partnership involving the Union, the member states and the private sector. Main elements of the compromise On pillar one, the compromise reached today reinforces the competences of the Chips Joint Undertaking which will be responsible for the selection of the centres of excellence, as part of its work programme. On pillar two, the final compromise widens the scope of the so called ‘First-of-a-kind’ facilities to include those producing equipment used in semiconductor manufacturing. ’First-of-a-kind’ facilities contribute to the security of supply for the internal market and can benefit from fast-tracking of permit granting procedures. In addition, design centres that significantly enhance the Union’s capabilities in innovative chip design may receive a European label of ‘design centre of excellence’ which will be granted by the Commission. Member states may apply support measures for design centres that receive this label according to existing legislation. The compromise also underlines, the importance of international cooperation and the protection of intellectual property rights as two key elements for the creation of an ecosystem for semiconductors. Budget A new semiconductor objective is created within the Digital Europe Programme which will support capacity building in the Chips-sector and funds are also mobilised within the research framework Horizon Europe, amounting to a total of €3.3 billion for the ‘Chips for Europe Initiative’. The financing solution was found within the limits of the existing interinstitutional agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework and comes on top of resources already allocated to similar objectives within the MFF and through the digital strand in the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

Press material Tuesday 18 April 2023

● Eurogroup   18/04/2023 17:03 | Statements and remarks | Statement by the Eurogroup President, Paschal Donohoe, on the publication of the Commission proposal for a reform of the bank crisis management and deposit insurance (CMDI) framework   I welcome the publication by the European Commission today of a legislative proposal for a reform of the bank crisis management and deposit insurance (CMDI) framework. I would like to thank the Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, the Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis and Commissioner Mairead McGuinness for their work on this proposal. This is an important step forward in our work on completing the Banking Union. It responds to the Eurogroup agreement of last June which identified strengthening the common framework for bank crisis management and national deposit guarantee schemes as the immediate next step in our work on completing the Banking Union and outlined a number of broad elements which should underpin a strengthened CMDI framework. Recent events have reminded us that shocks in the banking system can emerge at any time. We have also seen how the reforms we undertook since the global financial crisis in implementing stringent regulatory requirements (in terms of reserves, liquidity buffers, and capital) have led to banks operating in the EU being able to better withstand shocks. A consistent and effective framework for managing banks in distress is a critical part of the Banking Union. Its role is to ensure financial stability, create a level playing field, and protect depositors and taxpayers through consistent burden sharing and through the industry-funded safety nets. The EU framework has been significantly reinforced over the last decade. Yet, there remains room for improvement and harmonisation to build a crisis management framework suited for all types of banks operating in the EU, including for small and medium-sized banks. At our next Eurogroup meeting on 28 April 2023, we will have a discussion on the Banking Union, including a first political exchange on the CMDI legislative proposal in the context of the follow-up to the Eurogroup statement on the future of the Banking Union of 16 June 2022. In full respect of the work of the co-legislators which will take up negotiations on the legislative proposal, I would like to highlight the importance of completing the work during this institutional cycle (running until early 2024). This is a priority for the Eurogroup, but more importantly it is a priority for further enhancing the continued stability and resilience of our Banking Union. Eurogroup statement on the future of the Banking Union of 16 June 2022 Banking Union (background information)