EU sets three main priorities

EU sets three main priorities

JAKARTA (JP): This year will be an onerous time for the
European Union. Critical developments are scheduled to take place
that could set the tone for the EU as it enters the next
millennium.

As president of the EU for the first half of the year, the
Netherlands will have their hands full.

"Our presidency comes at a very important moment in the
development of the European Union," Dutch Ambassador to Jakarta,
Paul Brouwer, said in a recent interview.

The Netherlands took over the rotational seat of the EU from
Ireland at the beginning of this year. It will be succeeded in
July by Luxembourg.

Three main priorities have been set up for the Dutch six month
presidency of the EU.

The first is the successful conclusion of the Inter-
governmental Conference which will hopefully direct the EU into
the next century. This will include institutional housecleaning
in anticipation of new members and establishing sharper
definitions for the EU's political objectives.

The Inter-governmental Conference, which began in March last
year, will probably set the EU on a smooth course for the coming
years. It will also gauge the success of the Dutch presidency.

Despite already committing themselves to concluding the
conference by the middle of this year, it remains to be seen
whether political will can overcome the continued squabbling and
persistent obstacles remaining.

The Netherlands will have their hands full in trying to
reconcile these differences when the EU meet to conclude the
conference in Amsterdam later this year.

The second priority is preparation for the European Monetary
Union (EMU). The Dutch presidency will have to lay the ground
work in determining which EU members will join the third stage of
the EMU when it begins on Jan. 1, 1999.

Apart from the enforcement of a strict budgetary discipline,
an exchange rate mechanism will also have to be formulated for EU
members who participate in this stage.

The third priority is preparations for the admission of new
members. Countries like Bulgaria, Rumania, Poland, Hungary and
Slovakia are already knocking on the EU's door. While analysts
believe no new members are expected to accede in the next few
years, it will be up to The Hague to foster even closer dialog
with potential members and anticipate possible problems that may
occur during the integration of these new members.

While these three priorities are likely to dominate the
attention of the Dutch presidency, external relations are also
likely to be a factor.

"The presidency also plays an important role in many
international affairs. I could mention for instance the
peacekeeping processes like in the former Yugoslavia," Ambassador
Brouwer said.

Areas of concentration will include the Middle East peace
process, developments in the former Yugoslavia and transatlantic
relations.

Dutch Foreign Minister Hans Van Mierlo will also co-chair the
12th EU-ASEAN ministerial meeting with Singapore Foreign Minister
S. Jayakumar later this month in Singapore.

The meeting comes at a delicate time in EU-ASEAN relations
after southeast Asian leaders last year warned that EU's
continued persistence in "extraneous" issues such as human rights
in the cooperation framework could jeopardize ties between the
two regional groups.

Ambassador Brouwer said the Netherlands as EU president is
dedicated to the success of the upcoming meeting in Singapore and
that discussions of this delicate issue would be conducted in a
spirit of mutual respect and non-confrontation.

Speaking on the overall responsibilities of the EU presidency,
Brouwer explained that The Hague has to advance topics which are
beyond mere domestic consumption. "One should realize that during
such a presidency, there is not so much a national agenda but a
European Agenda," he said.

Brouwer added that despite it being rotational in nature, the
presidency of the EU is still a distinguished episode.

"It's always a special occurrence. It's a heavy
responsibility," he said while underlining the duties of the
presidency which includes the maintenance of continuity and good
guardianship of EU policy matters.

He added that it is also very important to promote the concept
of open regionalism. "It would be a set back if the regions were
to close up or became isolated from each other. So it is very
important that regional development goes hand-in-hand with
globalization."

"We in the European Union must be careful not to keep the
Union from the outside world," he said. (mds)