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THE WAITING LIST FOR THE EU
The opening session of the World Economic Forum
Points by the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Milan Kucan
Salzburg (Austria), 7 July 1996
"It is therefore my belief that the changes that have taken place in Europe have at their roots a dual significance, that is, to show that Europe is capable of thinking and acting in a post-Maastricht way, meaning that it can deepen the existing relations within itself, as well as in a post-Berlin way, meaning that it can proceed towards expansion."
It would be overly ambitious of me to respond to your intellectually challenging question with a direct and all-embracing answer, which indeed it deserves. I shall therefore offer an indirect answer.
I am inclined to the view that Europe is undergoing intensive changes, and that the European and world reality has changed. Such changes have occurred as a repercussion of the collapse of the Berlin Wall, which fell on both sides, that is, in the European East and the European West. I believe in view of these new realities that we must now reconsider in a different way the future of Europe as a whole. Within this framework, the European Union is also undergoing changes, and certain changes should be introduced into it. In this way the changes within the European Union are part of the changes occurring throughout Europe.
These historic changes offer a great opportunity to Europe. For the first time this century, it is now possible for us to consider realistically that Europe is destined to cooperation and not to division. This has been made possible now for the first time after long centuries of conflict, war, hegemony, exploitation and division.
Cooperation has now become realistic because the countries of Europe are no longer committed to ideologies, to hegemonies and to blocs. These countries are committed to the same values that are inherent in the foundations of the European Christian spiritual and political tradition and in its civilisation, values such as human dignity, human rights, the rule of law, justice, equality of citizens, acceptance of differences, pluralism, tolerance and a market economy.
It would be an illusion, however, to expect that this happy world of cooperation will come about simply by itself. Indeed we must strive to achieve it. And now Europe has a historic opportunity, and at the same time a historic responsibility, to reach this world of cooperation, taking due account of the existing reality.
On the subject of the existing reality, the divisions in Europe must also be considered, since they are a part of this reality. We should consider, for example, the division into the developed and underdeveloped parts of Europe, into the stable and unstable parts, into war and peace, into the NATO and non-NATO countries, and into the European Union and non-European Union countries. And here we should note that the issue of Europe's relations with Russia is entirely unresolved. In fact, there is not simply one Europe in existence. This is in no way a good thing for Europe. There are numerous reasons for such a conclusion. One is that Europe must become a united economic area, if it wishes to be capable of cooperating and competing in the increasingly demanding universal world market.
These new realities in Europe also represent a challenge for the European Union. Indeed the European Union (European Economic Community, prev. op.) was set up at a time when Europe was still divided into blocs, and had the task of securing the unity and competitiveness of the political West of Europe in its relations with the political East of Europe. But now Europe is facing new challenges, which might basically be summed up in two points. The European Union is facing a crisis in its institutions and in its internal relations as a result of the fact that it is now going beyond its role of being solely an economic community. This is the external expression of a deeper crisis concerning its spiritual concept, the expression of a crisis over the very idea of Europe and its values. The second point is raised by the claim for the expansion of Europe towards the east, towards Eastern Europe, towards those countries which since the collapse of the Berlin Wall have been returning to the natural environment of their spiritual and political tradition and civilisation. They are returning to this world after having been violently wrenched out of it for fifty years. To these countries - and Slovenia is one of them - the European Union represents the institutional framework for their return. It confirms the fact that their return has really taken place.
It is therefore my belief that the changes that have taken place in Europe have at their roots a dual significance, that is, to show that Europe is capable of thinking and acting in a post-Maastricht way, meaning that it can deepen the existing relations within itself, as well as in a post-Berlin way, meaning that it can proceed towards expansion.
What does this mean for Slovenia and for the other countries on the waiting list? First of all it gives them an assurance that the European Union is going to proceed towards expansion, and that in so doing it will function as the backbone. Moreover it means that all countries will enjoy equal conditions and equal criteria in that process. And the most important point is that this assurance will function as the main generator and motivator of internal development in these countries. In Slovenia it will act as a generator for adapting our way of life to European Union criteria, in the political, economic, environmental, technological, legal, defence, security and other areas.
As soon as these criteria are fulfilled, membership in the European Union becomes simply a political issue, that is, an issue connected to political will. For the time being, this is an issue primarily of our real ability to face the tasks deriving from membership, even though Slovenia is already fulfilling many of the criteria.
I am convinced that it is desirable and indeed necessary for both Slovenia and the European Union to reduce the time needed to bridge the gap existing between the political and the real dimensions of this process, and that it will be to the advantage of both that this is done through cooperation. In this light it becomes irrelevant which Central European country will become the first member of the European Union. What matters is that one of them does become a member, in order to prove to the others that it is worth making the effort, and to demonstrate to the European Union that it is not threatened by this.
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