SIMILAR VIEWS AS TO THE FUTURE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
Press conference with the President of the Republic of Malta
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Ljubljana, 15 March 2001

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MILAN KUCAN
Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that I once again welcomed President de Marco, the President of the friendly Republic of Malta to Slovenia. I have had the opportunity to discuss with him on several occasions the issues which were also on our agenda today, particularly since Slovenia was very glad to see Malta's repeat decision to apply for EU membership. Malta is a state that cannot be opposed using arguments that apply to other candidate countries which, perhaps, carry with them certain anxieties due to their having lived in a different economic and political system. This does not apply to Malta and thus Malta's application is a serious test of the commitment of EU member states to enlargement, as was decided at the Nice summit. It turned out that we have very similar views on the future of the European Union. It turned out, that these are two relatively small countries who want to contribute creatively to the future of Europe and to the future of the European Union, and who want the European Union not only to be a common market but also to develop its other functions - political, foreign, defence, security, social and other functions – and for all countries, including Slovenia and Malta, to maintain their identity in this context. Both countries are prepared to get involved in the creation of such a future, which is why they believe it to be very important for them to be actively involved in the 'post Nice' process.

Secondly, both countries believe that the dates that were set in principle at Nice are dates that also demand credibility in practical decision-making, whereby both countries believe that they will meet membership requirements by the end of next year.

Also, both countries wish to see an individualised approach and treatment of candidate countries. Not because we believe that accession constitutes some sort of competitive relationship between the candidate countries but because individual treatment will provide additional motivation to each of these countries.

Also accepted with understanding was our position that any bilateral disputes between Member States and candidate countries should not constitute an obstacle to enlargement, that certain internal political problems in individual countries such as parliamentary elections should not slow down the process, and also that certain conditions set by Member States regarding the free movement of people and of labour and capital should not be accepted as a general principle without differentiation between individual countries.

Regarding the European Union it was also said that this organisation will have an increasingly regional component, that the regional allegiance of states will become more apparent, and that it is very important for Slovenia to maintain its Mediterranean maritime identity along with its Central European identity. That is also why it is striving towards a more active role within the Barcelona process. From this perspective the willingness of the two countries to conclude a maritime agreement in the immediate future is also very important. Today, an agreement on the protection and promotion of investments was signed. In conjunction with the already prepared agreement on the prevention of double taxation this will constitute, in the words of President de Marco, the cornerstone of legal security in trade relations.

We also discussed security issues, including the situation in the Middle East and particularly in South Eastern Europe. Our common assessment is that, unfortunately, battles of the past are being fought in these territories, not battles with the past and even less so battles for the future. All the effort that was invested and that undoubtedly did yield a certain result nevertheless failed to provide long-term peace and stability because they didn't deal with the question of what are the reasons for the continually recurring conflicts. Thus these efforts also failed to find an answer to alleviate these reasons. In simple terms, it is about the unresolved national question and the attempt to solve these questions using instruments and means of the 19th and not of the 21st century.

Our talks have demonstrated that political dialogue between out two countries is very useful and that it is particularly useful to talk to President de Marco about issues related to theoretical deliberations on what is the state today, what is a nation state, what is national sovereignty, modern federalism and other forms of cooperation between countries. It is not only President de Marco's great life's experience that surfaces here, but also the soul of a lawyer in our guest.
Thank you.



REPORTER
President Kucan, how will you make sure that, regarding the current situation in Macedonia, Slovenia fulfils the expectations of your guest, the President of Malta?

MILAN KUCAN
You are certainly aware of the fact that Macedonia emerged from the crisis following the dissolution of Yugoslavia in the most peaceful manner. However, anyone who knew the situation and the reasons for the conflicts in former Yugoslavia and the broader historic conflicts in the Balkans had to expect that a conflict will emerge in Macedonia, too. I warned of this on several occasions. It has now happened. Today I despatched a letter of solidarity to the President of Macedonia, expressing solidarity with Macedonia, with its efforts to maintain its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and welcoming the great endeavours to resolve the conflicts in a peaceful way through dialogue thus preventing the conflict from escalating in which case it could lead to another refugee catastrophe which we have experienced once or several times in the Balkans. It is my firm belief that the solution to the Macedonian problem lies not only in Macedonia, for it is part of a broader problem. It is part of a triple problem of the concepts of Greater Croatia, Greater Serbia and Greater Albania which have not been overcome and which, although facing realistic defeat, nevertheless re-emerge. We need to take a thorough look at what is happening in Herzegovina today, what is happening in the south of Serbia, what is happening in Kosovo and what is going on in Macedonia. Looking at a single spot only will, in my opinion, lead to another erroneous assessment as well as erroneous measures.