The effort to grow

With the New Year the EU has grown – at least in numbers. The member states have now risen to 27, those that have adopted the single currency to 13, while the number of official languages has increased from 20 to 23 (apart from Bulgarian and Romanian, it will now be possible to speak Gaelic in the “common home”). The revolving Presidency of the European Council has passed from Finland to Germany, and immediately German Chancellor Merkel and the President of the Commission Barroso flew to Washington to strengthen trans-Atlantic relations. WELCOME TO SOFIA AND BUCHAREST. So the EU has welcomed two new members, Bulgaria and Romania: with their 30 million citizens, they bring the total population of the EU to close to half a billion people. “The 1st January 2007 represents an historic day”, said the President of the Commission , JOSÉ MANUEL BARROSO . “I congratulate the citizens of Bulgaria and Romania and their leaders for the courage, determination and commitment they have demonstrated in their preparations for accession”. The head of the Executive then welcomed Meglena Kuneva and Leonard Orban, who will represent Sofia and Bucharest in the Commission. The preparations of the two former Communist countries for EU accession have in fact lasted for over ten years: their application for membership was lodged in 1995 and they began membership negotiations in 2000. The process of reforms that the Bulgarians and Romanians have had to undergo to bring themselves into line with Community standards has been rather painful: the accession Treaty was signed in 2005, but the EU has since adopted a series of “safeguard measures” that oblige the two countries to make further reforms in the sectors of public administration, justice and the economy. EUROZONE GROWS TO 13 MEMBERS. The eurozone too has enlarged its frontiers with the entry of Slovenia into the single currency. Commissioner for Monetary Affairs JOAQUÍN ALMUNIA explained: “Today, 1st January, is a great day for Slovenia, the first of the new member states that entered the EU in 2004 to adopt the single currency”. “Slovene citizens are beginning to pay and be paid in euros and I wish to remind them carefully to monitor the process in the weeks ahead and control the level of prices”, to prevent any inflationary pressure. In July 2006 European economic ministers fixed the exchange between the Slovene tolar and the euro at 239.64. The eurozone now comprises 317 million citizens, including two million Slovenes. The single currency, introduced for bookkeeping operations in 1999, only began effectively to circulate in cash on 1st January 2002. Initially adopted by 11 nations, the eurozone was subsequently extended by the entry of Greece. MERKEL’S PROGRAMMES. The start of the new year was marked not only by the growth of the EU to 27 members, but also by Germany’s assumption of the six-month revolving Presidency of the European Council. ANGELA MERKEL , German Chancellor, lost no time in reminding EU members that “Europe will be a common success only if each member, in its own country, does its own homework”. Merkel said she was convinced that “only a united Europe will be able to tackle the challenges of globalization, violence, terrorism and war. A divided Europe is condemned to failure”. Merkel’s first public appearance as EU President (as well as current President of the G8) was her visit to US President George W. Bush on 4 January, followed, on Monday 8 January, by that of the head of the EU Executive Barroso. High on the agenda of the German Presidency are the “resumption of the debate on the Constitutional Treaty”, “stimuli for economic growth and employment”, and the “reinforcement of the area of freedom, justice and security”. Berlin “therefore intends to give a further impulse to the competitiveness of businesses by reinforcing the role of research, innovation and knowledge as sources of growth and the creation of new jobs”, “bearing in mind the importance of the social dimension of European policy”. AGENDA FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. The German Presidency plans three major events: in March the summit dedicated to economic and social issues; in the same month the extraordinary summit to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the founding Treaties of the Community and to draft the Declaration on the future of Europe; and lastly, in June, the Council of heads of state and of government on the question of the Constitution. Other deadlines in the months ahead include the vote for the election of the future President of the European Parliament in Strasbourg in mid-January. The most likely candidate to take over the post of the Spanish Socialist Josep Borrell as President of the EP up to the European elections in 2009 is the German leader of the European People’s Party group Hans-Gert Poettering. Many events in the political and social fields relating to the European Year of Equal Opportunities will also take place in 2007. A series of cultural activities are also been planned in the cities of Luxembourg and Sibiu (Romania), who will share the honour of being European Capitals of Culture for the next 12 months, not forgetting the 3rd European Ecumenical Assembly to be held in Sibiu in September.