Statement

Public appearances

CENTRAL EUROPEAN SUMMIT IN SLOVENIA A SUCCESS
President Kucan Summarises Two-Day Debate by Sixteen Central European Presidents
Closing press conference of the 9th Meeting of Presidents of Central European States

Brdo, 1 June 2002

Distinguished Presidents and dear friends, Ladies and Gentlemen of the press. My colleague have entrusted me with the task of trying to summarise the results of our discussions these past two days, which is by no means a simple undertaking.

I ask you for your understanding as you are working out here in the sun. Let the consolation be that it would have been even worse if you had to work in the rain, so this is nevertheless the better solution.

Firstly let me inform you that we spoke, as was agreed in advance, of Central Europe as an integrator of a uniting Europe, about Europe's transformation and its future, about the achievements of Europe's transformation and its future.

Of course we could not avoid the issue of the current shape of the world as we see it and the situation brought about by the global nature of our world. With all due respect to differences, we attentively listened to one another and spoke very frankly. We took account of the fact that our countries are in different situations and in different positions vis-à-vis European integration structures, that our experiences with life in these structures differ, that our historical burdens differ and that these facts also determine the positions we represent.

We all agreed that the times in which this meeting is taking place are very important times for Europe. Crucial processes are under way that will leave a profound mark on our future. Deliberations on these times require of us to consider the positive achievements of Europe's development following the end of its block division. However, the substance and significance of the individual decisions we are now facing are such that one could also brand our times as critical. Positive development has already considerably changed Europe's shape and has to a large extent alleviated its erstwhile divisions. There are certain issues, however, that require carefully thought-out answers to prevent these issues from threatening the positive achievement of our development to date.

The moment of our meeting, which marked our discussions, was determined primarily by the following:

Firstly the upcoming decision on EU and NATO enlargement, the consequences of which will certainly reach beyond erstwhile European divisions.

Furthermore, our discussion was influenced considerably by the recent founding of the NATO-Russia Council at the Rome Summit. This requires a consideration of the future security architecture in Europe. This of course was influenced also by some of the recent meetings between Presidents Bush and Putin, as well as President Bush's tour around some of Europe's capitals.

Another influence on our deliberations was the fact that the Convention on the Future of Europe and on its political model is now underway. The Convention will have to map out such a future set-up of a United Europe that would preserve Europe's inner plurality while at the same time acting as a single, creative and responsible voice of the entire continent on a global scale. That would enable Europe to have political influence on a global scale, commensurate with its economic might and cultural clout. That would also make EU enlargement the project of a united Europe, and that would make the project of a United Europe a cultural and ethical undertaking as well.

Finally, our talks were also influenced by the recognition of the effects of globalisation and the necessity of facing up to its negative effects: terrorism, organised international crime, illegal migrations and similar phenomena. We were of the opinion that through intensive cooperation going beyond state borders, Europe could serve as a good example of how the negative effects of globalisation can be alleviated or at least limited.

I would also like to let you know that there were no differences between us in terms of our fundamental views on the necessity of enlargement of European integration structures. We are unanimous on this issue, although the disparities in the distance that the participating countries still have to travel to the EU and NATO does give rise to some small differences in the assessment of integration processes, as do the differences in the interests and expectations, which, as was the case in Slovenia some time ago, are sometimes nearly illusions.

We were also unanimous that a United Europe was our common destiny and that belonging to Central Europe is a unique identification of commitment to the values that we wish to jointly develop and protect in a United Europe. We were well aware that the current process of enlargement is not just any other enlargement. It must also be a process that strengthens the European Union's capability to adopt decisions, to act effectively and rationally. These are serious issues requiring an inner strengthening of integration and an improvement of its efficiency. We were also aware of the negative consequences of enlargement not occurring or of it being postponed or of it slowing down considerably both in the EU and NATO.

We also shared the view that a United Europe should reach to where its values reach. It should reach to where there is a willingness to accept and develop its legal order, its democratic political culture and its willingness to share in the responsibility for the development of a global world and of the positive dimensions of its interdependence. All of us believed that the forces of reconciliation must be strengthened in order to prevent the future of becoming a history of new wars. Intercultural dialogue must be strengthened to this end.

We underlined the need for a United Europe – also through internal institutional changes – to develop as soon as possible such political influence in the global world that will be commensurate with its true economic power. In our discussions we found that all the crucial European values of economic, political and spiritual democracy as well as social stability apply in Central Europe today. We underlined that Central Europe's stability is important for the stability of our entire continent.

Furthermore we found that Central Europe is no longer just a bridge between Europe's erstwhile political east and its erstwhile political west. Instead it is increasingly becoming an active factor of integration of its broader eastern and south-eastern region with Euro-Atlantic structures.

We came to the conclusion that the political and spiritual situation in Central Europe and around the whole continent is not just positive. It is also reviving national populisms, xenophobia, even anti-Semitism, a European provincial pretentiousness towards other civilisations and continents, as well as political radicalism. Fundamentalisms do not acknowledge dialogue, which is now becoming and must become Europe's way of life. Quite the opposite, fundamentalisms force confrontation through dialogue. That is why these phenomena are dangerous. We were of the opinion that it is not possible to accept the patterns of political behaviour that endanger the achievements of Europe's positive development following the fall of the Berlin Wall, of behaviour that poses a threat to security, solidarity and reconciliation and that opposes EU and NATO enlargement.

The need was also underscored – and this is the crucial emphasis of our meeting – for an open and well-argued dialogue with the citizens of all European states, both in the EU Member States and in the Candidate Countries, as well as others. This dialogue should explain the purpose of European integration and the meaning of institutional changes, as well as the effect of these changes on the lives of our citizens. People need information in order to understand the necessity and justification of these changes. If left uninformed, they will be prone to uncertainty, anxiety about the loss of social security, fear of a lower quality of life, of the loss of their cultural and spiritual identity, of the loss of their own culture and, in particular, the loss of any possibility of influencing decisions. All of this also leads to a resistance towards enlargement both in the Member States and in the Candidates, creating an atmosphere exploited by the opponents of enlargement, by advocates of national populism and xenophobia. All this also created fertile ground for national egotism, which narrows the sphere of solidarity as a fundamental value that we also spoke of extensively. Central Europe is most familiar with all of these issues. It also has the greatest need for dialogue with its citizens as this is a small part of Europe combining a lot of diversity, combining also all these contradictions, differences and misunderstandings. That is perhaps why it would be easiest as well as most necessary for such dialogue to pursue the golden rule of life in an organised society: do not do to others what you would not want done to you.

We also touched on the situation in Southeast Europe and the future of this region in the immediate vicinity of Central Europe. In the opinion of the participants of this meeting these are European issues as well as issues of European responsibility since they are issues of European security. The joint discussion with the Presidents from this region demonstrated visible progress in the stabilisation and implementation of European values. It also demonstrated the need for European solidarity in economic and social development, thus also the full application of European democratic values in the region. New institutional arrangements of the EU with these countries could accelerate their internal reform and reduce their distance from the EU. We were particularly encouraged by and welcomed the decision by the Presidents of the FRY and Croatia to sign a joint statement at our meeting on new steps towards a rapprochement between the two countries. We are glad to see signs of improved confidence between these two countries and we hope that this gesture will be matched with deed.

I hope that I am expressing all the participants' assessment in saying as host of this meeting that these past two days have been a success. The debate demonstrated a high level of solidarity, friendship and trust among ourselves, among the Presidents of the states we represent. In our shared opinion this is a solid foundation of future cooperation among us, among our countries, a foundation for the successful clearing of paths for concrete action and confidence on the part of our governments and parliaments, who have the responsibility and the competence to do so. Also very useful were the numerous bilateral meetings we held and to which we consecrated a lot of our time.

This meeting will be followed by the 10th meeting next year in Salzburg, on the tenth anniversary of the idea of these meetings. The host next year will be President Klestil of the Republic of Austria.

Our past meetings are also the subject of a special statement prepared by President Havel and myself on his initiative. That statement has been made available to you. We thanked the distinguished President and dear friend Vaclav Havel for his intellectual justification of our meeting and for his great involvement in making these meetings a success. They shall bear the mark of his visionary ideas in the future. The purpose of this statement was to present our view of the significance of these meetings, their achievements, of the times we are living, and of the future, including the future of these meetings from this perspective. We were glad to note that most of the deliberations and their substance coincided with our statement and that other Presidents also seconded the statement in their interventions.

A strong resolve was voiced to continue with these meetings in the future, for as long as the Presidents participating at the meetings will see them as meaningful and as a space for strengthening mutual trust and the conviction that all of us are part of the same area, sharing the same spiritual inclinations and the same past, therefore also sharing similar expectations for the future.

In conclusion let me wish every success to future Central European meetings. On behalf of all of us I would also like to thank you, ladies and gentlemen of the press, for your attentive and responsible reporting to the public about our work. It was through you and through your work that the public at large was informed of our activities. As already mentioned by the Director of the Government PR and Media Office, Mrs Brglez, the Presidents will now be available to you to the left and right of the sitting area according to the programme you have been made familiar with.
Thank you.