Prime Minister Andrus Ansip attended the summit of the European Union

Brussels, 14 December 2007 - Today, Prime Minister Andrus Ansip attended the European Council, which focused on three wider circles of topics – legal and internal issues, economic, social and environmental affairs and foreign relations.

The creation of the so-called reflection group or discussion panel developed into a separate topic of discussion. Based on the proposal of the President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, a nine-member panel was created, whose goal is to analyse the future of Europe in the longer perspective and make suggestions for the role of the European Union in the years 2020-2030.

The former Prime Minister of Spain, Felipe Gonzales, was elected as the chairman of the reflection group, and Vaira-Vike Freiberg, former President of Latvia, and Jorma Ollila, chairman of the supervisory board of the Finnish telecommunication company Nokia were elected as vice chairmen.

Prime Minister Andrus Ansip regarded it important that the mandate of the discussion panel is clearly defined.

“For us, the mandate of the discussion panel is balanced in all aspects,” said Ansip. “The panel will handle very specific topics such as the competitiveness of the economy, sustainable development, global security, migration, energy and climatic changes, the battle with international crime and terrorism. I am also glad that the reflection group will start paying particular attention to how to reach a citizen better and handle their expectations and needs”.

Under legal and internal affairs, the European Council Conclusions handle, among others, the topic of anti cyber crime that is very important for Estonia.

“It was Estonia’s wish that the European Council would recognise the need to form a common policy on cyber security and combating anti cyber crime in the European Union,” said Ansip. “We are glad that this proposal for amendment was taken into account”.

Another important issue for Estonia, which was noted in European Council Conclusions, was the initiative of Sweden with respect to establishing the Baltic Sea Strategy. Ansip was convinced that regional cooperation and development of the Baltic Sea region is of increasing importance from the viewpoint of the entire European Union.

Today, the European Council approved the Declaration on Globalisation, which aims at shaping globalisation according to the interests of all citizens of the European Union by relying on the common values and principles of the Union.

“Estonia is of the opinion that globalisation promotes competition, which, in turn, brings about economic growth and increases the number of jobs,” Prime Minister Ansip commented on the declaration. “This is why the European Union does not have to protect itself from globalisation, but focus on how to take maximum advantage of the options related to it”.
Ansip added that the conclusions of the European Council give an overview of what was accomplished during the Presidency of Portugal. “It can be stated for certain that it was a successful Presidency,” Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said.

Government Communications Office