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Speech given by Prime Minister Juha Sipilä at the Helsinki Finnish Club EU evening on 18 October 2016

Government Communications Department
Publication date 18.10.2016 18.45 | Published in English on 20.10.2016 at 14.11
Speech

(check against delivery)

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Last week I was in Latin America – Argentina and Mexico – on a trade mission with a business delegation. On the trip, I met two presidents, ten ministers and many business leaders. In both countries, winds of reform are now blowing, with more than a dozen reforms under way in each country. The reforms also offer new business opportunities for Finland, and the companies that accompanied me were satisfied with the fruits of the trade mission.

The European Union and Brexit were also the subject of much discussion. Concern about the direction of Europe as well as inwards turning were strongly to the fore.

We discussed the growing political trend in which the response to uncertainty is messages that reinforce fear. Closed borders – both mentally and from the standpoint of free trade or people’s freedom of movement.

I would not want the European Union or the global community to be built like this. As an engineer, I prefer to build bridges than to lay down walls.

In many respects, we are living in difficult times. The shared values, vision and general raison d’être of the European Union are being called into question by many in Europe. The Union’s unity and functional capacity are being put to the test, because the Union is too decentralised and too slow to react. This is evident, for example, in the Union’s foreign and security policy. The Union’s ability to act is also the focus of great expectations, even where it has no authority, let alone the mechanisms, to take action. The conflict between expectation and outcome is too large, and it is likely to cause disappointment in the Union. Nor is the rather inflexible and hierarchical 28-state system agile enough to act in the world today.

All of these factors compel us to reconsider both actions and operating practices in the Union. And I am not talking about amending treaties, but rather of improving job performance. This is also true for Member States such as Finland. Every day, we must challenge ourselves as to whether we are doing the right things in the right order and the right way. The Union must focus on essential issues and on implementation. Matters must be seen through to completion. Overcoming difficult issues requires a Union that is internally cohesive, practical, functional and able to produce results.

Citizens’ confidence in the European Union must also be restored. The Union must be able to speak in a way that ordinary people understand. Instead of images we need more deeds. The Finnish Government’s role in the reform of the EU is clear: we are an active, pragmatic and solution-oriented Member State. We do not cause problems; we solve them.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Next year will be the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome. The European Union’s most important task, its mission, has not changed since its founding: it is still the strengthening of peace and stability on our continent and throughout the world. This mission is actually more topical than ever.

The war in Syria has once again exposed the weaknesses of the international community. Indiscriminate bombing of civilians and children continues and no-one seems to be able to do anything about it. One is forced to ask how this can be possible in 2016.

The European Union is historically a European peace project, but it should also be able to strengthen peace and stability more productively outside its borders. The EU has a globally superior mix of tools for peace-building, poverty eradication and resolution of environmental problems.

Through its tools and characteristics, the EU exercises soft power and smart power in the world. An example of the former is the EU’s environmental policy and development policy. An example of the latter is, in particular, the EU’s value base and operating practices, which must not be allowed to erode. There are already, of course, threatening signs of an internal weakening of smart power – not to mention the external pressures directed at it.

Although there is no lack of soft power and smart power in the EU, the Union lacks, however, power in its the most concrete form – hard power. The EU cannot send an army to wage war anywhere, even if it desired to do so. The EU’s means to participate in a hard-core solution to the war in Syria are limited. Use of hard power also describes Russia’s activity at present in Europe and nearby areas, but the EU cannot respond to this because it does not agree to play – and nor should it play – according to the hard ground rules adopted by Russia. In its foreign and security policy, the EU is therefore inevitably softer and slower than hard actors. For this reason, it is extremely important that we hold on to our soft and smart power and use our tools more effectively.

To date, the EU’s security and defence policy has been, above all, about crisis management. Now the focus is turning increasingly to strengthening Europeans’ sense of security. In the December European Council, we will decide on a practical security and defence plan and on how we can better utilise the options offered by the EU treaties. On the table, there will be a number of concrete proposals relating, for example, to developing the funding of crisis management operations, developing the defence market, improving the military security-of-supply system, responding to hybrid threats, permanent structured cooperation, a permanent joint operational headquarters and a defence fund.

In addition to external security, citizens expect the Union to act to strengthen internal security. Brutal acts of terrorism affect us all. Terrorism, organised crime and cyber crime must be fought resolutely and with all available means. In defending the European way of life and values, we must be uncompromising. Cooperation and exchange of information between Member States must be stepped up. Radicalisation must be prevented and combated decisively. By the end of the year, agreement must be reached on the directive on combating terrorism. The directive will ensure a sufficiently strong legal framework for action against the threat of terrorism. Directives alone, however, will not help in matter; we need action.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The result of the UK referendum in June was a big disappointment both to Finland and the whole of the EU. Brexit highlighted the concerns of citizens, concerns that also exist in other Member States. The EU must now demonstrate its capacity to respond to them.

After the result of the referendum, information on the submission of official notification to withdraw from the Union is awaited from the UK. Prime Minister May has clarified the planned timetable, indicating that the notification to withdraw will be submitted in March next year. After this, withdrawal negotiations will take around two years, namely until spring 2019.

With respect to Brexit, many questions are open, because no Member State has withdrawn from the Union before. The EU will have to negotiate both the UK’s withdrawal and separately the new relationship to be created with the UK. The results of the negotiations must be such that they secure the future of the EU.

The UK is an important partner for Finland both economically and in terms of security. The Finnish Government has launched a comprehensive assessment of the areas that will be affected by the change in the UK’s relationship with the EU as well as the issues that must be taken into account in the negotiation process in order to serve Finland’s interests.

Last June, the European Council outlined very clearly that access to the EU’s single market requires all four freedoms to be respected. The issue of the free movement of people will be one of the most difficult aspects of the negotiations.

The EU’s heads of state or government convened in Bratislava in mid-September to discuss the current state of the Union and our common future. Although one Member State has decided to leave, the EU remains indispensable for the other Member States. The so-called Bratislava Roadmap is an opportunity to develop the Union to meet citizens’ expectations. The relationship between the Member States and EU bodies must be improved.

It was good to confirm at the first discussion that the Member States have a similar assessment of the situation. We must honestly recognise and acknowledge the problems that undermine the unity of the Union. We are in a situation in which values seem to be worryingly differentiated in Europe. Europe is a continent of the rule of law, democracy and human rights. We must hold on to these fundamental principles, and we must combat effectively the challenges directed at them.

The EU must also be assessed according to concrete results achieved. Too often we have to conclude that joint statements have remained at the level of words, and that we have been unable to implement the policies outlined in them. The solidarity that is part of Union membership also requires the implementation of jointly made decisions. 

The European Union is the world’s largest economic area. We need to focus on improving competitiveness and employment. We need to resolutely develop legislation in the single market, for example in the areas of standardisation and free trade. We must do all we can to further the fundamentals, namely the four freedoms (people, goods, services and capital). We must pay better attention to implementation and we must stick to what we jointly agree on.

In developing the EU, there must be democratic legitimacy and citizens’ approval. In Finland, this is handled effectively through the participation of Parliament in the preparation of EU matters. An understanding of key national interests and sometimes too little attention paid to national special circumstances influence citizens’ views about the Union in each Member State. Here in Finland, for example, the bioeconomy is currently a major issue of this kind. Bioenergy is of vital significance in the EU’s renewable energy policy and regulatory development. For Finland, it is important to safeguard the use of sustainably-produced biomass, such as energy biomass harvested from commercial forests and industrial by-products, as a renewable source of energy.

Respect for others and an understanding of Member States’ sensitivities is also required. In many Member States, too much energy is currently devoted to defending one’s own interests within the Union. This energy would also be better directed to joint construction. It is also certain that the intellectual resources to be used for Brexit, for example, would be better devoted to improving competition on the EU level.  

Discussion about the EU is all too often black and white. The EU is not falling apart, but it is also not becoming a federal state. Publicly emphasising the extremes serves the political interests of the extremes. The concerns felt by citizens in many Member States create a dangerous sounding board for extreme views.

History shows that the EU develops more through evolution than revolution. We must learn from history; nations diverge if integration happens too quickly. We saw this even before Brexit, for example in the European Constitution referendums in France and the Netherlands. 

In its development, the EU must find solutions to the major challenges it faces: migration and external borders, external and internal security, economic and social development.

For the EU, migration is a key internal and external policy issue, which requires from the Union and Member States a new way of thinking and acting. Currently, the EU’s handling of proposals on migration does not advance very smoothly.

Joint arrangements should be made more effective, especially when there is a risk that migration flows will once again begin to grow. We must continue to work long-term for an expansion of consensus on migration policy. This is a question about how the principles of responsibility and solidarity should be applied in the future.

In terms of growth and employment, it is essential to ensure that the strengthening of the single market moves forward. This is in the interests of businesses, consumers and workers, and at the same time the foundation for the EU’s competitiveness. The smooth functioning of the single market and success in global competition also requires rapid progress in developing the digital single market. At the same time, we must ensure that we produce less, but better, regulation.

For Finland, it is essential that the EU remains a relevant player in trade policy. It is also very important that the EU continues to promote free trade. The EU is facing a situation in which the trade agreements it negotiates will not necessarily fully come into force. This trend is worrying. The Commission is also taking a more protectionist course. For Finland, free trade and its promotion are absolutely vital.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Strengthening Europe’s position requires from the Union strong functional capacity and unity. We need an ability to make compromises and a strong commitment to jointly made decisions and their implementation. We also needed better monitoring of implementation. The Union must focus on the essentials and must reform in order to regain the trust of its citizens. The Union and European values are worth defending. Despite many casting defects – initial flaws – the Union is the best thing that has happened to Europe.

We must also remember that we are actually rowing the boat and that we must not let it drift.

English translation of the speech published on 20 October 2016