José Barroso ziet toekomst in een cultureel Europa (en)
SPEECH/08/267
José Manuel Durão Barroso
President of the European Commission
"Building the Europe of the Future: A Europe of Citizens, Opportunities and Culture"
60th Anniversary of the Congress of Europe, 1948-2008
The Hague, 24 May 2008
Sixty years ago, in The Hague, Winston Churchill referred to the idea of Europe as a "spark that would start a fire which would glow brighter and stronger in the hearts and minds of men and women in many lands".
Sixty years later, we can say that the European idea illuminates a whole Continent, from the Atlantic to the Black Sea, from the Mediterranean to the Baltic. Yesterday, we were divided and some of us were not free. Today, we are united and all of us are free. This is a remarkable historical success.
These are the great priorities for the future:
The Europe of the future must also be a Europe of opportunities and solidarity. Where innovation and education is at the top of our agenda. Europe leads and innovates when its schools and its universities use the potential of the young to the full. With better education and better skills, European citizens will have the right jobs for the future. Social justice and social cohesion will be reinforced. And our free and open economies will be more competitive to face the challenges of globalization.
The Europe of the future must also have a strong voice in world politics. A voice that works for its citizens and for its countries, and that helps improving the world. We must promote our values, defend our interests and lead in the creation of a more just and sustainable global order.
But Europe cannot be completed without a cultural dimension. Sixty years ago, a great European thinker, Denis de Rougemont, whose disciple I was, called for a cultural Europe. The union of the Europeans would need to be founded on a community of culture, which Rougemont defined as "unité non unitaire"; a culture that is common and diverse at the same time.
A common European approach to immigration, integration and asylum is another priority. Within a common space and free movement of people it does not make sense that each Member States has its own immigration and integration policy. An effective common approach to immigration is also crucial to avoid populism and xenophobia.
Energy and climate change policies remain at the top of our agenda. To be credible wee need to keep our commitments. As our founding fathers rightly decided, European integration started with coal and steel. From then on we had more than 50 years of successful European integration. Today, I believe, energy and climate change can produce a similar impetus and reinforce further integration inside Europe and for the world if we lead the debate and action on these issues.