The pride of being Europeans” “” “

The year 2002 has welcomed the advent of the Euro and the disappearance of the national currencies. But many other challenges still await the European Union, beginning with the reform of the European institutions and the enlargement of the Union, as established by the European Council at Laeken, on 14 and 15 December last year. We open the first number of Sir Europe of the new year with an interview of the President of the European Union, Romano Prodi , who reviews the first steps of the Euro and the major appointments that await the Union in the months and years ahead. The new year has been marked by the advent of the Euro. What will the next few months be like for Italian consumers? Are the fears of price increases and swindles justified? “The fears of increases as a result of rounding up prices are limited, because the governments, central banks, consumers’ and retailers’ associations of the countries involved are mobilized to avoid them and because the negative economic situation is of no help to those who want to increase prices. But we must be constantly on our guard against swindles; there will undoubtedly be those who will try to defraud. We need to pay close attention to the change we are given in the shops, to bank notes, to price lists. A great deal of attention, to the point of pedantry and even beyond. The next few months will be normal for Italian consumers, with one further source of pride and satisfaction: we’ll have a currency that we can take with us throughout the world, and throughout the world it will be recognized, just as the dollar is for the Americans”. Do you share the adverse judgements on Europe’s lack of political incisiveness? “For a citizen everything is Europe and its most identifiable symbol is the Commission. This makes ever more evident how great is the demand for Europe and how our structures must become more efficient to satisfy it. This is the mandate of the Convention decided on by the European Council in Laeken. The objective is that of making the decision-making structures more effective and more efficient. As far as the Commission’s competencies are concerned, our responses have always been rapid and efficient. Foreign policy, however, is the competence of the Council, in other words the direct expression of the national governments that in this field have to move unanimously with the so-called intergovernmental method. So long as this rule remains in force, forms of paralysis may occur, as in the case of the choice of where the headquarters of European agencies should be located. Steps leading to the surrender of sovereignty in such delicate fields as foreign policy require a long time and are only taken once public opinion is ready for them. To envisage shortcuts to the process is wishful thinking. Almost fifty years were needed to arrive at the Euro; I don’t say that an equally long time will be needed for an effective political union, but it would be a serious error to try to accelerate the process. That would risk a crisis of rejection”. You are pressing for an enlargement of the European Union, in particular towards the countries of central and eastern Europe. Why? “First, because the citizens of those countries have a right to enter into the Union, since they are Europeans. Second, because the European Union produces peace and stability. For us it has become normal to live in harmony with the French, the Germans and all the others, but up till 1945 we went through almost two millennia of wars and invasions. Ever since the birth of the Union, conflicts have only occurred outside it. Enlargement is the first, and perhaps the last, opportunity that history offers to us to reunify our continent peacefully and in harmony. We cannot lose this opportunity for growth, prosperity and peace due to a shabby calculation of self-interest; and, what’s more, a mistaken one”. Many people say that the 11 September has changed the life of us all. Has it also changed the activity and objectives of the European Union? “Europe’s reaction to the events of 11 September was immediate, especially in those matters for which the Commission is competent. For over 18 months I had been trying to unblock the negotiations on the European arrest warrant and to promote coordination in the fight against money laundering. After 11 September the Union immediately approved the draft legislation in question that is now being implemented, together with increased coordination in the exchange of anti-terrorist information between Europe and the USA. I can’t say that Europe is changed because of all this, because Europe was always capable of lightning and unitary responses to external shocks. It’s when things are going well that the mechanism slows down. But I can say that the 11 September was a further revelation of the need for our countries to collaborate ever more closely in response to global challenges. If you had to explain to a child what it means to be a European citizen what words would you choose? “Dear child, you’re a citizen of a country where personal liberties are the most important and most strongly defended thing of all; that means you can live as you like, think as you like, hope in a happy future according to your dreams. Just as you are allowed to live as you like, so you must allow others to do likewise, even if you don’t agree with them. So long as your own liberty does not impede that of others, toleration is guaranteed here. If there should ever come a day in your life when you are in difficulty, you will be able to count on structures that care for you, because no one is abandoned in their moment of need: this principle is one we call solidarity and defence of the weakest members of society. But do all you can to grow up to the best of your ability and study, because if you do well yourself, you will be better able to help others. Living here and being a European citizen in fact entails obligations: you cannot shut yourself off from the world around you. If others suffer from famine, you must help them; if others suffer from poverty, you cannot remain indifferent. If the freedom of the world is threatened and the high-handed torment the weak and deny their rights, you cannot bury your head in the sand. You’re a European citizen now. These are the fundamental values of being a European”.