Speech by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia
H. E. Mrs. Sandra Kalniete, the representative of the Latvian government
at the Convention Brussels, May 15, 2003 Intervention on the draft articles of the Constitutional treaty on the EU institutions General Comments I would like to express my appreciation for the extensive and excellent work of the Presidium and for your work in particular. I believe that one of our common aspirations regarding the outcome of the Convention as a whole and the present draft of the Constitutional Treaty are rooted in our shared understanding of the basic principles of the Union. Among these principles the most important are the equality of states and the institutional balance within EU. This concerns reinforcement of the community method as well. However, the present draft in its institutional part does not comply fully with these criteria. I also believe that we have to have the common reading of the Nice Treaty regarding the institutions. We also have to agree to keep the Nice Treaty intact. Otherwise, we will open a Pandoras box. European Parliament The draft revises the Nice Treaty as regards the number of members of the European Parliament, referring to the European Parliament as a body representing only citizens, not both citizens and States. I believe that this infringes the principle of equality of the Member States and does not comply with the principle of the dualistic nature of the European Union. European Council I strongly believe that for the sake of the equality of the states, the principle of the rotating Presidency of the European Council has to be maintained. The system of rotating Presidency, in my opinion, translates the role every nation state can play in the EU. It also embodies the equality of each Member State. The responsibility and visibility of the rotating Presidency enables each Member State to strengthen the vision of the European Union as a Union of different nation states sharing common aims and values. For the sake of maintaining the institutional balance, the proposal to grant the status of EU institution to the European Council is not an acceptable solution. I also doubt whether the principle of equality is respected if the President of the Council were to be elected, even if the Europeans would directly elect him or her. In my opinion such a change would upset the institutional balance among EU institutions. QMV As regards the voting procedures provided in the draft, I welcome the establishment of the QMV as a general procedure, in respect to the actions taken by the Council of Ministers. Meanwhile, I would like to suggest maintaining the definition of QMV in accordance with the Nice Treaty. European Commission A few words about the composition of the European Commission. Staying in the logic of the Nice Treaty, we have opportunity to preserve the current principle of representation: one commissioner to one Member State. The doubts have been raised about the capacity to work efficiently. Lets test our capability to work as a group of 25. After the transitional period we shall have the requisite experience to adopt the correct and most functional arrangements regarding the composition of the Commission. Minister of Foreign Affairs Finally, I fully support the establishment of the post of Foreign Minister. I believe that he or she will be capable to voice loudly the concerns of the EU in the shaping of the new world order. However, I have doubts, whether a single person would be able to cope with all the workload proper to his or her responsibilities. Furthermore I believe that the term of External Representative better reflects the nature of this post, and would assist in avoiding possible misinterpretations.
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