The European Council held in Göteborg on 15 and 16 June, which marked the end of Sweden’s sixth-month presidency of the EU, was the occasion for defining the future strategies and commitments of the EU, also beyond 2001. Future of Europe and it enlargement: the Fifteen, noting with satisfaction the many positive initiatives connected with the political debate launched in March this year on the future development of the enlarged EU, have confirmed their intention to proceed with the processes of national ratification of the Treaty of Nice, in such a way as to make it possible to conclude the first round of membership negotiations already by 2002 and to call the next Intergovernmental Conference for Institutional Reforms (ICIR) in 2004; this will permit a first group of candidate countries to participate in the European elections scheduled for 2004. Council and Commission have also assumed the commitment to second the Irish government in organizing a second referendum for the ratification of the Treaty of Nice, after the recent rejection of the Treaty in a popular vote. The debate on the future of Europe will continue until the Summit of Laeken-Bruxelles at the end of the year: the summit will have as its prime objective the definition of the agenda of the ICIR and possibly the further definition of a calendar for enlargement, which should in any case by prepared in the course of the first half of 20002 under the Spanish Presidency. Sustainable development: the Council approved a new strategy for sustainable development which adds a third dimension to economic and social renewal: the protection of the environment. The objective consists in taking into consideration both the socioeconomic and environmental repercussions in every segment of the EU decision-making process. In this regard, the Heads of State and of Government emphasised the importance of clearly distinguishing between economic growth and utilization of resources, inviting the member States to formulate as soon as possible their own national strategy for sustainable development and begin a consultative process with all the parties concerned. For its part the Union pledged a better internal coordination that may take due account of the issue. At the same time, the Fifteen reaffirmed the European commitment to ratifying the Kyoto Protocol, to limiting the risks for public health, to managing natural resources in a more responsible manner and to integrating the environmental dimension in Community policies. Labour: the pursuit of the strategic objective of full employment, in spite of the confirmed solidity of the Union’s economic basics, has suffered a slowdown due to the deterioration of the international economic situation. The Council believes, however, that the adoption of the Euro will boost internal growth. The structural reforms will be accelerated, in particular as regards the improvement of competition on the markets of goods, services and capital and the simplification of the regulatory framework that disciplines the internal market. Wto: the reinforcement of the multilateral trade system within the World Trade Organization (Wto) represents for the UE a prerequisite for the promotion and relaunch of economic growth. At Göteborg the summit expressed itself in favour of an “ambitious and balanced new round of negotiations” within the 4th Ministerial Conference of the Wto scheduled for November, in Qatar, and also pointed out the importance of responding to the needs of the developing countries. Cooperation for peace and security: the Göteborg Council reaffirmed political commitments and practical measures in the fields of European policy of security and defence (Pesd), of the prevention of conflicts both with military and civilian means, of cooperation between the EU and UNO, and in the geopolitical areas of the Western Balkans, the Middle East, Algeria, East Timor and the Korean peninsula. Lastly, the summit adopted two declarations on the prevention of the proliferation of ballistic missiles and on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. a cura di Gian Andrea Garancini
