THE DUTY OF MEMBERS STATES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION FOR BETTER CONCRETE ACTIONS

USPA NEWS - Six months after the elections, the European institutions are in place. Parliament and Commission have indicated their priorities and their commitment to try to meet the high expectations of Europeans. But what about member states? Paralyzed by difficult domestic political situations, more wait-and-see and fearful than ever, will they be able to seize the opportunity of positive public opinions who wish effective solutions to their anxieties? All the studies show that they are ready for real breaks, that is to say common actions, provided that the results are at the rendezvous. It is time for governments to stop confiding in diplomacy the conduct of European affairs which are the purest and noblest policy.

The European Union has entered a new phase of its development. It is no longer a priority to decompartmentalize the continent. It is done, even if there is still work. It is a question of imposing it in its place, that of its weight, in a world in turmoil. And this can not be done without the strong will of member states. It's not technical anymore, it's politics! AT LEAST THREE AREAS DESERVE STRONG COMMITMENT FORN NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS------------------- Security and defense. They must show their determination to defend the continent, including far away where our interests are involved. Our soldiers know this, who often already work together on the ground and suffer from the lack of political solidarities at the highest level. Investing in the technologies of the future requires an ambitious common budget and not cold reflexes. We must take risks, not to try to make belatedly what we missed, but to anticipate the technologies of tomorrow, in computing, space, maritime, artificial intelligence. So are our jobs. Economic and monetary policy requires a real continental union of capital markets, banking rules and savings, the source of financing for our investments. It calls for a complete overhaul and presumably the pooling of our strengths and weaknesses. The necessary respect of the disciplines has never been enough to make a policy and it deserves a breath of fresh air, bold and courageous. It may be our Member States that are in a state of "European brain death. They shine neither by their audacity nor by their imagination! The new European legislature that will open will be only rear-guard fights and small fears, if a great ambition, shared by some Member States, carried by them and assumed, does not come to offer the European Community the opportunity to mobilize all its energy towards the future. We therefore expect our governments to show the example of concrete cooperation. Any initiative of at least two states that share their means in a European spirit open to others to face these issues, will trigger a necessary movement. Let them show the example and the European train will snort. Otherwise, he could skate a long time on their tracks.SOURCE : By Jean Dominique Giuliani President of Robert Schuman Foundation