The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council to discuss the situation in Iraq and the New Neighbours initiative
Government Information Unit Ministry for Foreign Affairs 110/2003
The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) will meet on 14 April in Luxembourg. Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja and Minister Jari Vilén will represent Finland at the meeting.
The Council will consider the situation vis-à-vis Iraq and the Middle East. The EU adopted a common position at the Brussels European Council on 20-21 March and, according to the reached agreement, the UN and its special organisations must continue to play a central role in the preparation of decisions and actions relating to Iraq.
The Council will continue discussion on the Wider Europe - New Neighbours initiative on the basis of the Commission communication. The meeting is to prepare the handling of the issue at the European Conference to be held in Athens on 17 April. The Conference will hear, e.g., the new Member States' and applicant countries' views on the initiative. As the Union enlarges, its neighbourhood policy will primarily focus on the new neighbours, Ukraine, Belo-Russia and Moldova.
The European Security and Defence Policy is also on the meeting agenda. The first EU-led military crisis management operation, CONCORDIA, was launched in the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia on 31 March. Finland also contributes to the operation which is to run for six months. In line with the agreed permanent arrangements between the EU and NATO, the Union will conduct the operation by relying on the resources of NATO, in particular, as regards planning and command structure.
In the context of trade policy, the Council will discuss the state of the WTO negotiation round. The Commission will submit a review to the Council on the Doha negotiation round and progress attained in various sectors. The next significant milestone, as regards the trade negotiations, is the ministerial-level WTO meeting to be held in Cancun in September 2003.
The Council is also to prepare the EU-Russia summit that will take place in St. Petersburg on 31 May. In addition, the Council will discuss ways to improve the EU's action to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. The aim is to strengthen multilateral agreement arrangements in combating weapons of mass destruction. The Council will also consider the situation vis-à-vis the Western Balkans and North Korea. The monitoring of the impact of Durban World Conference against Racism in the work of the UN Human Rights Committee and the follow-up to SARS epidemic will also be discussed at the Council.
The Council will discuss the progress of the work of the European Convention with particular emphasis on institutional questions which the President of the European Convention, Valéry Gisgard d'Estaing, is to discuss with the Informal European Council in Athens on 16 April. The President of the European Convention has requested that the European Council present its views on, e.g., the composition of the Commission, the procedure to be applied in appointing the President of the Commission and defining his/her responsibilities, the role of the European Council and on Union's external representation. The timetable set for the work of the European Convention may also be discussed.
Finland considers it important that the Convention bring its work to a conclusion in time before the next European Council to be held in June and that adequate time be left for preparation between the conclusion of the Convention's work and the launching of the next Intergovernmental Conference. Any solution regarding the EU institutions must be based on equality between the Member States and must not change the balance between the institutions. New institutions are not to be established.
Further information: Lotta Lindegren, Senior Officer, Government Secretariat for EU Affairs, tel. +358 9 1602 2150 or Anne Huhtamäki, Counsellor, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 9 1605 6097