By FLORIAN RAUNIG
Tirana, Jun 7 – It is a pleasure for me to speak to you today at this mostly welcomed event. I would like to thank the organisers for bringing us together today and to give us the chance to talk, listen and discuss about Europe. It gives me the opportunity to bring to you closer the Austrian perspective of Europe, whereas understandably at the same time I would like to focus on the possible future conceptions and developments of Europe and particularly the enlargement process. Understandably the enlargement process or seen from an Albanian perspective, the European Integration process, because this is your main focus. According to the available figures, integration into Europe seems to be for the Albanian population highly attractive, as to my knowledge more than 90 percent have a positive respectively very positive attitude regarding the integration process. Therefore, I would like to thank the organizers for bringing us together also in this regard as it will give me the possibility, to hear and learn about your perceptions, ideas and visions of Europe, when we hopefully will have a lively discussion afterwards.
Before referring to the specific Austrian perspective of European Integration, I think it might be useful to first mention some basic notions linked to Europe and to scrutinize shortly the basic elements of Europe. Not only for hours, but for days even months we could discuss about the fundamental question: what is Europe? And probably all the answers we will find will also represent Europe: in short terms, Europe is a wide framework of historic, economic, social, geographic, climatic, demographic and linguistic varieties that form a very diversified set of cultures which despite its diversity we understand as something common: Europe. Furthermore, we have to ask ourselves, what is the European Union, where your country wants to integrate to and where my country is already since 17 years a member.
The European Union is something unique and unknown so far in history, and seen from a historical point the Union is very young. This leads as to the date of the very first predecessor of the European Union, the European Coal and Steel Community, founded in 1951. This historic event combines the very basic question of “what is the European Union” with the question about the origin and the sense of the European Union, namely “why is the European Union”. The answer is simple, nevertheless many times not any more in the main focus, when we talk about Europe: European Union does in first line not mean economic welfare of its members, no – the European Union is a peace project! By unifying coal and steel followed by the European Atomic Energy Community the founders of the European Communities respectively later the Union aimed to avoid that anything like the Second World War will never again spread from European soils. A further scrutiny leads us to the conclusion that the European Union is unique in that sense that there is no other entity, neither actually nor historically, that could be comparable to it. Therefore, to define the European Union is sometimes very difficult and it seems to be easier to try to describe the Union by telling what it is not: It is not a federation but it is also not an alliance; it is not a state and it is not an international organisation but it is an entity that has legal liabilities and obligations, and it is an entity that has the legal ability to be member in international bodies. Additionally, it is an entity that is subject to a daily construction and modification process. The Union is built, changed, modified every day by its Member States in cooperation with the European Commission. The European Union is work in progress; it is one of the most adventurous political processes in today’s world, as every day it looks different on a path that is leading constantly ahead. Which leads us to the last analytical question about the European Union, that is, how does this strange entity function, how could, can and will it achieve its goals, how did, does and will it realize the tasks given it by itself: There is one simply sounding but profound answer: the principle of functioning of the European Union, its very essence is COMPROMISE.
Dozens of committees, composed by all members of the Union, negotiate on a daily basis the many issues of the Union, diplomats, ministers and head of states meet in a monthly rhythm, if necessary even more frequently, in order to find the common ground for action and further development and progress of the Union. Today’s Europe was born on the ruins of the Second World War and it was reborn when in the period from 1989 to 1991 its second half could free itself from oppression and dictatorship. Therefore European Integration should also be understood as a re-integration. It means in concrete terms: re-integrate in order to complete. We are reintegrating states, societies, people that have been alienated by terrifying regimes for too long time. Some of these states, societies, and people after having got rid of their oppressors where even forced to life through a further nightmare, that of nationalistic extremism and ethnic hate. It is time to bring them home to Europe.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to come now to the second part of my presentation that is current EU Integration of the Western Balkans seen from an Austrian perspective. In this part, I very much rely on the basic outline that has been given by the Austrian State Secretary for European and International Affairs, Mr. Wolfgang Waldner, during his visit to Tirana November last year. Austria’s close involvement in this region is well known and very obvious given our close historical, cultural, political, economic, human as much as emotional ties. At the outset, I would like to recall one permanent overarching constant in Austria’s and the EU’s relationship with the Western Balkans: It is our firm belief and clear commitment that the European project will only be completed once all the countries in the region between Subotica and Sarand롨ave become full members of the European Union. Austria’s foreign policy has been in full support of the countries of South East Europe on their path towards Europe. This means, first of all, trustful bilateral relations based on mutual understanding as well as political support in Brussels. Direct investment is a second pillar of our engagement. Austria is proud that Austrian companies with a total volume of around 12 billion Euros are among the biggest foreign investors in the Western Balkans.
Furthermore, our longstanding commitment to security and stability in the region is underscored by our substantial contributions to peacekeeping missions on the ground, including EUFOR and KFOR. Last, but not least, South East Europe has been a priority region of our development co-operation assistance for some 20 years. One of Austria’s key policy objectives in the region is to contribute to the overall European strategy based on the Stabilisation and Association Process and its massive pre-accession financial instruments. Our development cooperation activities in the fields of vocational training and higher education, economic development and employment as well as institution building and gender equality thus perfectly complement the sector based and step-by-step European integration process. Furthermore, the EU’s Twinning instrument is a particularly useful and practical tool to support re-form processes and assist countries in their approximation to EU norms and standards. Austria is a very active partner in this programme especially in the fields of justice reform, customs and tax administration, agriculture and environmental protection. We will continue our involvement in pre-accession support to the countries in the region with a specific focus on institutional and administrative capacities.
Ladies and Gentlemen, after the collapse of the communist regimes and the violent conflicts following Yugoslavia’s disintegration some twenty years ago, South East Europe experienced a tremendous political and economic transformation. The successful conclusion of the accession talks with Croatia shows that a credible EU perspective continues to be the best incentive for reforms in the region. The example of Croatia also makes clear that hard work and a strong will to implement reforms are the basis and the guarantee for a successful accession process. At the same time we must not waver in our commitment to unify our entire continent. We should neither accept an enlargement fatigue among EU Member States and citizens nor a reform fatigue in the countries of the Western Balkans. The ongoing reforms are the best insurance for the people in the region on their way towards Europe and a guarantee for stability, growth and prosperity. A process the EU as a whole will profit from, like we Austrians have experienced with the last rounds of enlargement.
Let me now turn to the some of the major challenges for the further integration process of South East Europe: As the latest EU Progress Reports have shown, the Western Balkan countries are working hard towards fulfilling EU conditionality. Nevertheless, significant progress key challenges remain, particularly regarding regional cooperation and reconciliation as well as sustainable economic development. Furthermore, strengthening the rule of law, the fight against corruption and organized crime as well as the reform of the public administration are essential for the well-functioning of the state as much as for attracting foreign investment. I am fully aware that reforms can be cumbersome and even painful: laws need to be amended and adopted, structures need to be changed, established practices have to be reversed, and familiar perceptions ought to be modified. As difficult these reforms might seem, they should not be undertaken to please the EU, but first and foremost for the benefit of your own citizens. No doubt, after the last round of enlargement, the rules have become stricter. For the next generation of accession talks the EU thus rightly proposes to start addressing the most difficult chapters such as judiciary first. Visa liberalization was a clear example that conditionality can work as it had a tremendous positive effect of reform efforts. Visa free travel clearly has an impact on the population: It connects people, families, businesses and universities, in short: it makes Europe a reality. Finally, I would like to say a few words on possible steps which could facilitate the future integration process of the Western Balkans. First we need to make Europe more tangible. Visa free travel needs to be extended to Kosovo. In addition, we have to be more outreach-oriented, we need to reach all sectors of society even in the remotest areas, irrespective of social status, age, income, or level of education. In this context, local stakeholders should be connected more closely and civil society entrusted with a bigger share of responsibility, especially when talking about democratization. Cultural programs and activities that target prejudices, fears, and misunderstandings can play an important role in this regard. In brief: we need to substantially increase the people-to-people contacts and exchanges. Second, we need to create synergies and better co-ordinate the various regional initiatives such as the Regional Co-operation Council, the South East European Co-operation Process, the Central European Initiative, the Adriatic Ionian Initiative, or the EU Strategy for the Danube region. This will allow us to maximize their impact for regional development and European Integration.
Third, we need to further intensify our business and economic interactions. Foreign investments create jobs, trust, bonds, prosperity and quality of life. This is the basic approach European integration has been built upon since its very beginning. Forth, we need to leave behind the ethno-nationalism of the 1990s for good and work for pluralistic societies. Austria has been cooperating fruitfully on dialogue initiatives with partners in the Western Balkans and we will continue these efforts. In conclusion, let me underline once again that Austria’s mission is to assist the Western Balkan countries in their transition towards full EU membership.
Austria and the EU may provide tools, offer guidance and support, but in the end the process has to be owned and implemented by your countries and must come from within. First and foremost, you are responsible for your own destiny. Let me reassure you, however, that Austria will remain a true friend and adamant supporter of all states of the Western Balkans and that we will continue to work on a common future with you in the European Union. Thank you.
Speech of Austrian Ambassador Florian Raunig at the European Academy 2012 organized by Albanian Institute for International Studies , Shkodra May 8th, 2012
