Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The final statement of the special European summit held by the leaders of the European Union countries during Wednesday and Thursday was announced in Brussels. The statement included many important economic files that occupied a large part of the discussions, in addition to the political and social files. The final statement stated:
A new European competitive agreement
In the face of new geopolitical realities and increasingly complex challenges, the European Union is committed to acting decisively to ensure its long-term competitiveness, prosperity and leadership on the global stage and strengthen its strategic sovereignty.
EU leaders stressed that they will ensure an integrated approach in all policy areas to:
Increased productivity and sustainable and inclusive growth
Building a strong, innovative and resilient economy
Strengthening Europe's unique socio-economic model to promote the EU's green and digital transitions and climate neutrality
To this end, the leaders stressed the need for a new agreement on competitiveness, based on a fully integrated single market. In this context, investments and access to capital are of key importance, as is the need for the EU to reduce its strategic dependences in sectors such as energy, bio-raw materials, semiconductors, health, digital, food, biotechnologies, chemistry and biotechnology. And space.
To implement the agreement, EU leaders called for rapid progress on a range of key drivers of competitiveness.
Single market
In order to deepen the EU single market, EU leaders called for:
Remove remaining barriers and fully implement freedom of movement rules
Strengthen the provision of cross-border services, particularly horizontal and economically important services, and essential goods such as medicines, while addressing transparency in supply chains
Improving transport and mobility links
Eliminate unfair practices, such as poor quality food
Develop a new strategy for a modern single market by June 2025, which addresses competitiveness challenges for companies of all sizes, with a particular focus on SMEs and start-ups.
The leaders also welcomed the presentation of the high-level report entitled “Much More than a Market” by Enrico Letta, President of the Jacques Delors Institute, and asked the current and future Presidencies of the Council to make progress on the report’s recommendations by the end of 2018.
Capital Markets Union
EU leaders stressed the urgent need for the Council and Commission to make rapid progress on all measures identified as essential to creating truly integrated European capital markets.
They suggested:
Harmonizing relevant aspects of national corporate insolvency frameworks
Enhancing investments through targeted convergence of corporate systems
Relaunching the European securitization market
Improving the convergence and efficiency of capital markets supervision across the EU
Improving stock investment conditions
Improved financing and exit options for European expansion operations
Providing a simple and effective cross-border investment and savings product for individual investors, and working on developing long-term pension and savings products
Promoting financial culture for citizens
Review and simplify the regulatory framework to reduce red tape
The leaders called on the Commission to assess and work to improve conditions to enable European supervisory authorities to effectively supervise more systemic cross-border actors in capital markets and financial markets.
At its meeting in June 2024, the European Council will review progress and discuss further steps to deepen the capital markets union.
European Capital Markets (Basic Information)
industry
EU leaders called for an effective EU industrial policy that:
Decarbonizing industries competitively
Develop a competitive advantage in digital and clean technologies
Diversify and secure strategic supply chains
It strengthens Europe's defence, technological and industrial base
EU industrial policy (background information)
Research and innovation
The leaders stressed the need to foster a more conducive environment for innovation based on excellent science to bring innovative products to market faster and at scale, while increasing investment in research and development to achieve the 3% GDP spending target.
energy
EU leaders stressed that to achieve a true energy union, it is necessary to secure abundant, affordable and clean energy that serves the dual goal of striving for European energy sovereignty and climate neutrality.
This will require an ambitious shift to electric energy that uses:
All net and low carbon solutions
Flexibility
Deploy and invest significantly in networking, storage and interconnection
Circular economy
The leaders called for increasing circularity and resource efficiency and taking steps to harness the potential of the bioeconomy. This can help reduce dependence on primary resources, especially with regard to critical raw materials.
Digital transformation
To support digital transformation, leaders called for:
Investments in digital infrastructure such as 5G and 6G
Removing barriers to cross-border activities in the mobile network sector
Further developing game-changing digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and quantum computing
They also asked the Commission and the High Representative to prepare a joint communication on how to strengthen EU leadership in global digital affairs.
Social policies
In order to promote high-quality jobs across Europe, the leaders stressed the importance of stepping up work on:
Achieving employment goals for 2030
Re-skilling, upskilling, and lifelong learning
Addressing gaps in skills and work
Ensuring equal opportunities
commerce
The leaders called for an ambitious and sustainable trade policy that:
It supports the central role of the World Trade Organization in the multilateral system
Opens third country markets to EU companies
Defends the interests of the European Union
It allows the development of flexible and reliable supply chains
Ensures equal opportunities
Creates mutual market access opportunities
EU trade policy (basic information)
Regulatory framework
The leaders stressed the need for a systematic framework that ensures legal certainty and predictability, is coherent across policy areas and open to innovative approaches, while also reducing the administrative burden on companies.
They stressed the importance of:
Simplify reporting and data obligations
Continuing the European Commission initiative to reduce reporting by 25%.
- Simplifying procedures for granting permits and licenses
To this end, the leaders asked the Commission to provide comprehensive impact assessments and competitiveness checks.
Agricultural sector
A strong and sustainable agricultural sector is key to food security and the strategic independence of the European Union. Farmers need a stable and predictable framework to help them meet environmental and climate challenges.
In line with its previous conclusions of 21 and 22 March 2024, the European Council called for the rapid adoption of the amendment to the Common Agricultural Policy Regulation and encouraged the Council and Commission to continue their work on:
Implement short and medium-term measures to reduce the administrative burden
Strengthening the position of farmers in the food supply chain
Ensure fair and rules-based competition globally and in the internal market
The proposed extension of the temporary framework for state aid and the possibility of increasing the maximum minimum aid for agriculture
Imposing further tariffs on imports into the EU of Russian and Belarusian agricultural products, taking into account their impact on the single market and ensuring that the transit of these goods to developing countries is not affected.
Misinformation and manipulation of foreign information
With the European Parliament elections approaching on 6-9 June 2024, the European Council reaffirmed the determination of the European Union and its Member States to closely monitor and contain any risks arising from:
Disinformation, including through artificial intelligence
Manipulation of foreign information
Interference in electoral processes