European Council discussed competitiveness and elected a new president

The European Council meeting, held in Brussels on 9 March, focused on jobs, growth and competitiveness. A well-functioning internal market is a key condition for their promotion, the European Council reminded.

The European Council stated that economic growth has now returned to all 28 Member States.

“Finland reached the average euro area growth rate last year. It means that we have been taking steps in the right direction. This gives us a good foundation for future work,” said Prime Minister Juha Sipilä.

“Bioeconomy and digital economy, which are key elements for economic growth in Finland, have strong ties to services. For this reason it is important for Finland that concrete steps are taken to promote the Single Market. A true Single Market in services is still some way off,” said Prime Minister Sipilä.

The European Council discussed the ambitious targets, agreed on in December, to boost European defence cooperation. Prime Minister Sipilä called for concrete results by next summer. He welcomed the earlier agreement to establish a military planning and conduct capability.

The European Council also discussed the fragile situation in the Western Balkans and reaffirmed its support for the European future of the Western Balkans.

Regarding the migration crisis, the European Council emphasised the importance of proceeding as agreed and of implementing all the decisions reached so far. The June European Council will continue the migration discussion.

The European Council re-elected Polish Donald Tusk as its president for a second term of two and a half years.

Poland was against the re-election of Tusk and refused to accept the conclusions of the meeting. The President of the European Council therefore gave his conclusions of the meeting.

Inquiries: Kare Halonen, State Secretary, EU Affairs, tel. +358 295 160 319, Riikka Pakarinen, Special Adviser (EU Affairs), tel. +358 40 748 0833 and Anne Sjöholm, Head of Communications for EU Affairs, tel. +358 40 537 0733, Prime Minister’s Office