The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council to discuss the operational programme for 2003
Government Information Unit
Ministry for Foreign Affairs
The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) will meet on 27-28 January in Brussels. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Erkki Tuomioja, will represent Finland at the meeting.
In the context of external relations, the Council will discuss the EU's priorities in the field of conflict prevention. The Göteborg European Council endorsed the EU Programme for the Prevention of Violent Conflicts and invited the Council to conduct a broad examination of threatening conflicts at the beginning of each Presidency. The discussion will be based on the survey prepared by the Council Secretariat. The Council is to prioritise the areas that require monitoring.
The Council is also to discuss the transfer of the crisis management operation, currently underway in the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia, from NATO to the EU. This would be the first military crisis management operation undertaken by the EU. The Copenhagen European Council reached a comprehensive agreement on permanent arrangements between the EU and NATO. The decision enables the EU to resort, if necessary, to NATO's resources in its crisis management operations.
The discussion on external relations will also cover the situation in the Middle East and Iraq. On 27 January, the UN Security Council will receive a report on the work of the UN arms inspectors, UNMOVIC and the IAEA, in Iraq. GAERC will also discuss the situation in North Korea. The moratorium on ballistic missile tests, declared by North Korea itself, will end this year and the country says it is withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a decision which has increased uncertainty in the Korean peninsula.
Concerning relations between the EU and Africa, among topics for discussion will be the planned EU-Africa Summit to be held in Lisbon and reactions to Zimbabwe's participation. In addition to other sanctions, a visa ban has been imposed on the members of the Zimbabwean government.
The handling of general affairs will begin with an open discussion on the operational programme for 2003. The President would like the discussion to focus on the Western Balkans. Finland considers particularly important the responsibility that the countries in the region have for their own future, the efficient implementation of commitments and the deepening of relations with the EU on the basis of the countries' own merits.
The Commission will present its synthesis report that will serve as the basis for the preparation of the Spring European Council meeting. The report's main focus is on the fulfilment of given commitments. The number of new initiatives is smaller than usual. The contents of the report may be included in preliminary discussion.
The preparation of the Spring European Council may also be placed on the agenda. Finland's objective is that GAERC is to coordinate the preparation of the Spring European Council in line with the procedures agreed upon at the Seville European Council. In this manner, the European Council will be allowed more time for the handling of broad questions regarding future policies.
The Council is also likely to discuss measures relating to the designation of the next Commission with the intention that the term of office the Members of the Commission representing the new Members States could begin on 1 May and that the new Commission could become operational on 1 November. Finland finds the proposed procedure acceptable.
As regards enlargement, the work programme of the Greek Presidency, with the aim of signing the accession treaty in Athens on 16 April, will be taken into account. Finland will give Greece its full support so that the agreed timetable can be adhered to.
Further information: Timo Ranta, Counsellor, Government Secretariat for EU Affairs, tel. +358 9 1602 2191, or Anne Huhtamäki, Counsellor, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Division for European Affairs, tel. +358 9 1605 6097