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European leaders giddy in European Political Community
1... European leaders giddy with new forum — as long as they overlook lingering tension
2... For the European Political Community, meeting is the message
3... Macron's New Europe Debuts in the Shadow of War
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/06/world/europe/macron-european-political-community.html
4... Prague hosts inaugural meeting of European Political Community
1... European leaders giddy with new forum — as long as they overlook lingering tension
By Suzanne Lynch and Clea Caulcutt October 7, 2022 12:32 am
France and the UK signal rapprochement, but rivals Greece and Turkey leave angry after the first European Political Community.
Leaders of nations of the European Political Community, European Commission and European Council pose for a photo during the inaugural meeting of the EPC at Prague Castle
Leaders had a spring in their step as they exited the majestic surroundings of Prague Castle on Thursday night following the inaugural meeting of Europe’s newest diplomatic forum — the European Political Community.
The prospect of yet another talking shop — this one bringing together over 40 European leaders — had left many skeptical, but there was plenty to keep leaders feeling upbeat.
British Prime Minister Liz Truss confirmed French President Emmanuel Macron was indeed a “friend,” not a “foe,” before Macron returned the compliment in spades. Leaders from warring Azerbaijan and Armenia got around a table to talk peace — twice. (And leaders got to dine on sea bass, venison and ice cream draped in meringue, mascarpone and “red fruit coulis.”)
A plan was also made for follow-up summits, with Moldova, Spain and the U.K. chosen to host.
2... For the European Political Community, meeting is the message
Although leaders struggled somewhat to maintain a fully united front throughout the meeting, for diplomats the presence of so many European countries was the message. [European Union]
As leaders from over 40 European countries gathered for a new continental forum on Thursday (6 September) to bring Europe closer amid Russia’s war in Ukraine and a looming energy crisis, the question remains whether the format risks becoming a talking shop.
The vision for the European Political Community (EPC), a brainchild of French President Emmanuel Macron, was to improve cooperation between EU countries and non-members such as the UK, Turkey, the Western Balkans, and the Caucasus region.
Russia was not invited to the gathering at Prague Castle along with Belarus, its neighbour and supporter in the war against Ukraine.
Although leaders struggled to maintain a fully united front throughout the meeting, for diplomats, the presence of so many European countries was the main message.
“We have very clearly displayed the unity of 44 European leaders in condemning Russian aggression and expressing support for Ukraine,” Macron told reporters after the summit.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the forum “confirms that Russia is in complete isolation.”
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was tied up with a crucial parliamentary debate at home, bringing the number of leaders down to 43 from the originally envisaged 44.
Macron described the aim as forging a common strategy to confront Europe’s challenges. “Up until now, that did not really exist and could lead to divisions,” he said.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the new forum “a great innovation” as leaders here would be able to talk about their common concerns “free of a daily agenda and the need to reach agreements.”
This would help improve ties with the EU’s neighbours, “many of which want to become members,” he added.
He said the new European grouping is not about creating “a new institution with an administration, bureaucracy,” but instead a venue for heads of state and government to meet regularly.
Another talking shop?
However, doubts about the viability of the Wider Europe concept remain, with some fearing that creating yet another format risks it may become a talking shop devoid of any real decision-making clout or content.
Its size is likely to be a major obstacle to delivering concrete policy actions, as will its political and cultural diversity and traditional rivalries between many of its members, from Armenia and Azerbaijan to Greece and Turkey.
Clarity was still needed on the EPC’s core rationale, the community’s final membership, its relationship with the EU, how it should take decisions and even whether it should have a budget of its own, EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell said in a blog post before the gathering.
Europe’s leading human rights watchdog, the pan-European Council of Europe, remained cautious, with the body’s spokesman Daniel Holtgen tweeting that the format “is still to be defined.”
“In the field of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, such a pan-European community already exists: it is the Council of Europe,” he said.
There was no formal statement or declaration following the first meeting of the community.
An EU official said it would have required weeks of negotiations and a direct open exchange was more important than a declaration.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressing the gathering via video link, urged leaders to turn the new political community into a ‘European community of peace’.
“Let today be the starting point. The point from which Europe and the entire free world will move to guarantee peace for all of us. It is possible,” he said, calling on the leaders to “direct all possible powers of Europe to end the war.”
But no concrete new ideas were announced on how Russia’s war could be ended, while Kyiv received only a vague pledge from Macron to “continue” to help militarily and financially, adding he would announce more details on Friday.
Enlargement hopefuls’ buy-in
Following the gathering, Macron, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, and Moldovan President Maia Sandu announced a plan for follow-up summits, with Moldova, Spain and the UK, respectively, chosen to host the format every six months from now.
The idea is to alternate between EU and non-EU countries as hosts.
Moving the forum to Moldova, an EU candidate country, is “a sign of support we value highly,” Sandu told reporters in Prague.
“Making Europe stronger and more resilient needs to be a continuous endeavour,” she added.
Before its inauguration on Thursday, critics had claimed the new forum is an attempt to put the brakes on EU enlargement.
EU candidates, particularly the Western Balkans and Ukraine, have made it clear from the beginning that they aim to join the EU as soon as possible and will not settle remain in a void between EU membership and the new EPC.
Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani told reporters that she had “been reassured” by the organisers, Macron and Fiala, that the forum was “not a replacement of the process of European integration for Western Balkans.”
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said that as long as his country is not part of the EU, it is crucial to be as close to the bloc as possible.
Animosity and friendliness
Given the absence of any concrete forum outcomes, the bilateral meetings gave a taste of what could be to come for the forum.
In what some described as remarkable optics, Macron and European Council President Charles Michel brought together leaders from Azerbaijan and Armenia to talk about peace on two occasions.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an used his intervention at the final session to seek confrontation with Greece.
Rumours of a direct clash between him and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis revealed the remaining rift between the two NATO allies.
Meanwhile, after an acrimonious divorce from the EU and years of political confrontation, UK’s new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, has struck a softer tone than London did under her predecessor Boris Johnson.
Her decision to attend left some hoping for a reset in relations between Brussels and London, building on a warmer tone in recent weeks in a stand-off between the two sides over post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland.
Truss confirmed Macron was indeed a “friend,” not a “foe,” about previous comments that had left many wondering how confrontational the UK under the new leader will be towards the EU27 bloc.
Truss and Macron held a bilateral meeting in Prague and issued a joint statement agreeing to continue supporting Ukraine, and work together on energy strategy, illegal migration and other matters. They announced holding the next UK-France Summit in France in 2023.
3... Macron's New Europe Debuts in the Shadow of War
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/06/world/europe/macron-european-political-community.html
The French president envisions the European Political Community as a bold way for an independent Europe to flex its muscle. Whether Europe will follow his lead is unclear.
President Emmanuel Macron of France. One of the president’s obsessions is ensuring that Europe not become a bystander to history, as he puts it.
Larger than the 27-nation European Union, the new body includes countries like Ukraine and Moldova that are impatient with the long process of securing E.U. membership. A mild provocation to the United States, which was not invited, and a larger one to Russia, which sees any Western turn by countries on its border as incendiary, the association aims to give a voice to a broader Europe.
Mr. Macron believes the war in Ukraine will be long, extending well beyond the winter as Russian reinforcements reach the front. Given this prospect, officials close to him say, he is determined that Europe remain united, that it join forces to confront its energy crisis, and that it emerge from a transformative moment closer to his often-stated goal of “strategic autonomy.”
The European Political Community, which he first mentioned in May during the French presidency of the European Union, is clearly a response to these concerns. It is an idea typical of Mr. Macron: a bold, far-reaching and disruptive strategic gamble meant to stir new thinking, even if its end result and even its practicability are uncertain.
What exactly defines the Europe taking shape in Prague remains unclear. Israel will participate, as will Turkey, Iceland, Georgia and Armenia.
“We can have a debate about where Europe really ends,” Mikulás Bek, the Czech E.U. Affairs Minister, told Czech Radio.
Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain, who is interested in exploring ways of cooperating with Europe in a forum outside the jilted European Union, will also attend. Britain, whose post-Brexit blues have grown more acute of late, has even offered to host the next meeting after Prague, which Mr. Macron wants within six months.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine will open the meeting with a speech delivered from Kyiv and is expected to press hard for accelerated membership in NATO and the European Union.
But one of the reasons for the new forum is precisely that such membership involves a long, cumbersome process. It appears that no nation in Ukraine’s current fractured state can meet the criteria required.
The State of the War
- Russia’s Retreat: After significant gains in eastern cities like Lyman, Ukraine is pushing farther into Russian-held territory in the south, expanding its campaign as Moscow struggles to mount a response and hold the line. The Ukrainian victories came as President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia illegally annexed four regions where fighting is raging.
- Dugina Assassination: U.S. intelligence agencies believe parts of the Ukrainian government authorized the car bomb attack near Moscow in August that killed Daria Dugina, the daughter of a prominent Russian nationalist. American officials said they were not aware of the plan ahead of time and that they had admonished Ukraine over it.
- Oil Supply Cuts: Saudi Arabia and Russia, acting as leaders of the OPEC Plus energy cartel, agreed to a large production cut in a bid to raise prices, countering efforts by the United States and Europe to constrain the oil revenue Moscow is using to pay for its war in Ukraine.
- Putin’s Nuclear Threats: For the first time since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, top Russian leaders are making explicit nuclear threats and officials in Washington are gaming out scenarios should Mr. Putin decide to use a tactical nuclear weapon.
For example, one condition for joining NATO, set out in Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty, is that any prospective member be in a position to “contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area.” Mr. Macron has said Ukrainian membership in the European Union could take “decades.”
More immediately, France sees the meeting as an important opportunity for discussion of energy cooperation on a continent that in February was reliant on Russia for 41 percent of its natural gas, a number now slashed to 7.5 percent through rapid diversification and Moscow’s supply manipulation.
The presence of Norway and Azerbaijan, two major oil and gas producers, and the imminence of winter will ensure “this goes well beyond a photo opportunity,” said a senior French official who requested anonymity in line with government practice.
She spoke as Saudi Arabia and Russia, leaders of the OPEC Plus energy cartel, agreed on Wednesday to their biggest cuts in oil production in more than two years in a bid to raise prices. The move, a demonstration of the shifting alliances the war has revealed and reinforced, was a direct rebuff to the United States and Europe, which have sought to slash Moscow’s revenue from the sale of crude, in part by capping its price.
Saudi Arabia appears unswayed by American outreach, including a visit in July by President Biden.
French and Romanian army soldiers during a NATO exercise in Romania last month.Credit...Daniel Mihailescu/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
The danger, as Mr. Macron sees it, is that Europe will merely seek short-term energy solutions. American exports to Europe of liquefied natural gas have risen sharply since the war began. But the gas is expensive and dependence on it would disadvantage European industries, as compared to their American counterparts, as well as create new forms of strategic vulnerability.
One of the president’s obsessions is ensuring that Europe not become a bystander to history, as he puts it, by losing control of its fate in the 21st century. The war in Ukraine has sharpened these concerns: the United States, which is essentially energy independent, and Europe, which is not, do not live the war in the same way.
France, which has already spent over $120 billion to help industry and households through the crisis provoked by Russia’s invasion of its neighbor, wants to leverage European unity to confront the crisis — by giving the European Commission in Brussels far-reaching powers similar to those it had during the COVID-19 pandemic. These might include negotiating purchases of gas at a Europe-wide level to obtain the best prices, just as with the purchase of vaccines.
Whether the war and energy crisis will spur Europe’s transition away from fossil fuels, or oblige it to shelve some of its plans, is unclear. Germany is turning to increased coal production as one means to wean itself of Russian gas, a move France sees as an error induced by the so-called nuclear taboo of its neighbor.
Power lines near the Bugey nuclear plant in central France. France has called for more nuclear power to increase energy independence. Credit...Laurent Cipriani/Associated Press
The French president has made clear he wants to see more electricity production on European soil. For him, the response to the war must be more nuclear power, more renewable energy, and more energy efficiency. He has announced ambitious plans to build new-generation atomic reactors in France.
How his new European “community” will react to such ideas is uncertain. Mr. Macron has a tendency to get ahead of himself in his perennial quest to shake up tired thinking. The new intergovernmental body in Prague has little in the way of formal structure.
But it will at least ensure that, instead of thinking only in terms of E.U. enlargement, with countries sometimes stuck in a waiting room for decades, Europe will have a forum for broad discussion of all the assumptions President Vladimir V. Putin’s Russia has shattered.
Ukraine and Europe
France and Germany Stand With Ukraine, and Putin Can Wait
Europe Offers Ukraine a Hope of Joining the E.U., but Not a Vast Arsenal
4... Prague hosts inaugural meeting of European Political Community
Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-10-06 21:49:45
https://english.news.cn/20221006/3f17bfca129f40e0b63a7cfb56dc854d/c.html
French President Emmanuel Macron (R) arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Xinhua/Lian Yi)
PRAGUE, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC).
The participants were holding roundtable discussions on security and peace as well as energy, climate and economy in the afternoon. They were also expected to discuss the platform's future settings, including the frequency of meetings and the host countries.
"Europe has many difficult problems right now, and we meet here to discuss solutions," Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said at the opening of the session.
"We want to have this group as a forum for informal exchanges of views on current events in Europe and beyond," he said, mentioning the Russia-Ukraine conflict, inflation, high energy prices, the transition to sustainable energy and economy and illegal migration.
The EPC meeting in Prague is the first of its kind. Besides the 27 member states of the European Union (EU), several Western Balkan nations, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and non-EU countries that are deeply integrated in the single market -- such as Norway and Switzerland -- as well as the United Kingdom (UK) and Türkiye were invited to the so-called "EU+" gathering.
The brainchild of French President Emmanuel Macron, the EPC serves as a platform for political coordination for European countries. It aims to promote political dialogue and cooperation on issues of common interest to strengthen the continent's security and stability, according to the EU.
However, some critics have said the new platform is an attempt to hinder EU enlargement and may become a talking shop with no real content.
Macron said before the meeting that he expects the EPC to have a lasting impact on the future of Europe. But the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU has said that "no formal written outcome of the EPC is envisaged" in Prague.
On Friday, the EU leaders will meet for an informal summit to discuss the most pressing issues facing the bloc, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the rising costs of energy and its economic ramifications. ■
German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Xinhua/Lian Yi)
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi (R) arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Photo by Dana Kesnerova/Xinhua)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Photo by Dana Kesnerova/Xinhua)
French President Emmanuel Macron arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Photo by Dana Kesnerova/Xinhua)
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (R) arrives for the inaugural meeting of the European Political Community (EPC) in Prague, the Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. Over 40 European leaders met here on Thursday for the inaugural meeting of the EPC. (Photo by Dana Kesnerova/Xinhua)
