| "Swedish EU Presidency Achieves Most of Its Goals |
[Jan. 25th, 2010|05:51 pm] |
"Sweden has fulfilled most of its goals before it ends its six-month-long rotating Presidency of the European Union on Friday.
Sweden's Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt summarized that the Swedish Presidency has achieved what it set out to achieve. ""My impression is that we have partly lived up to those expectations,"" he said.
LISBON TREATY
The Lisbon Treaty, the so-called EU constitution, came into force on Dec. 1. To realize such a result has not been easy. First Ireland went through a second referendum to pass the treaty, then the EU faced the Czech Republic's hesitation.
After the European Council gave the Czech Republic clarification regarding the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, Czech President Vaclav Klaus signed the treaty. Without a Swedish style of leadership of being persistent and trying to find the problem and solve it through discussion, the process might have been delayed.
With the Lisbon Treaty, Herman van Rompuy was elected the full- time Permanent President of the European Council with a term of two and a half years.
FINANCIAL SUPERVISION
Amid the global economic crisis, the Swedish Presidency has set up the goal of putting a financial supervision structure in place. The presidency indeed made EU members agree to have better and increased financial supervision.
A joint European Systemic Risk Board is being set up to monitor the stability of the financial system as a whole. Three new supervisory bodies on the micro level are being created at the same time: the European Banking Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and the European Securities and Markets Authority.
Inappropriate bonus culture has been brought to an end during the Swedish Presidency. A finance policy exit strategy and financial market exit strategy are in place. There are now clear principles for the phasing-out of support measures for the financial markets. Through these strategies, healthy banks will have the right incentive for a return to a competitive market and other banks will have an incentive to come to grips with their shortcomings.
The Swedish Presidency also pointed out a new growth strategy for the EU in 2020. The focus of future growth efforts shall be an eco-efficient economy, stronger competitiveness, increased investment in research and education, full employment and high level of labor supply, and long-term sustainable public finances.
COPENHAGEN CONFERENCE
Taking climate change as a top priority for its EU Presidency, Sweden's objective was to ensure that the EU continues to take responsibility for combating climate change and to act in unison at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) in December. The presidency had hoped to reach a legally binding agreement on climate issues.
The Swedish Presidency did make the EU act in unison in Copenhagen. But its goal for the reduction of emissions is not high enough. The EU set up its short and medium-term emissions target to reduce emissions by at least 20 percent by 2020 and by 30 percent if other parties make sufficient reductions of their own.
This was rejected by developing countries because they think the EU should reduce at least 40 percent by 2020. About financial mitigation support, the good thing is that there is an offer, but still the offer is too little and even with conditions.
Overall, the Swedish EU Presidency has made the EU walk toward a new era to begin to act as a unified political player and try to lead in climate change in order to come out of the economic crisis and create more jobs. Now it is for the forthcoming Presidency Spain and the new EU President to continue to realize the vision.
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