H.E. Mrs. Manuela Breazu:

I thank the Chairman for his opening remarks and for welcoming me. I thank the Members of the Dail and Seanad for taking time and for the good attendance for my presentation of the first ever priorities of Romania as holder of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. I thank my colleagues from the embassy who are present. Before starting my presentation I congratulate the Dáil on celebrating its recent anniversary of 100 years since its first sitting and I thank the Members of the Parliament for inviting us ambassadors as representatives of our Speakers to attend that very important event.

I would like to begin by thanking the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs for regularly organising meetings with the incoming holders of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, as well as for its constant engagement with European missions in Dublin. I am honoured to be here as part of this active dialogue on European affairs. I am particularly honoured that, for the first time in its history, Romania holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. It is a big honour for me to represent my country on this momentous occasion.

Our first EU Presidency will take place against the backdrop of large-scale developments that will determine the shape of the European Union, including the reflection on the future of Europe, the withdrawal of the UK from the EU, the transition towards a new legislative cycle as a result of the European elections in May 2019 and, implicitly, the end of the European Commission and European Parliament’s terms of office.

Common efforts by member states and the EU institutions are needed in order to identify workable solutions to major challenges currently facing the European unification project. Brexit takes the European Union into a new reality. It must be orderly and managed while maintaining the unity of the EU 27 and securing strong and close future relations with the UK. The EU will step into a new phase after Brexit. The Presidency, together with member states and the EU institutions, should act to shape a strategic frame for its future. In this context, the informal leaders summit in Sibiu on 9 May, two weeks before the European elections, will be a landmark of our Presidency. It will be a crucial moment to raise awareness among citizens about the added value generated by the EU and to send a message of unity within the European Union.

Furthermore, the end of the current EU institutional cycle translates into a high number of pending issues that reflect key priorities for the future of our Union and its citizens. We have set a high level of ambition in achieving tangible results while adopting a realistic approach. For this reason, in the first half of its term the Romanian Presidency will focus its efforts on advancing the legislative process in order to finalise as many issues as possible. Work will continue assiduously in the second half of our term on the equally important and complex non-legislative issues.

The European Union will need a solid and appropriate budgetary framework and resources in order to achieve the objectives of the following seven years. The European budget is a reflection of how we see the European Union in the future. That is why we must ensure that the results of the negotiations on the multi-annual budget are balanced and well calibrated to the daily reality as perceived by European citizens. In this vein, another topic on our agenda is to move forward with negotiations on the multi-annual financial framework, which is a flagship issue for our Presidency. We will make all possible efforts to prepare the ground for a timely agreement on the next multi-annual financial framework.

While holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Romania will act as a genuine and honest broker in order to find solutions that enable progress on the European agenda. We are convinced that cohesion is key in this regard, which is why we have chosen “Cohesion as a common European value” as our motto and the central theme of our Presidency. It records the principle of unity of member states and outlines the importance of cohesion policy and its key role in attaining the objective of reducing economic, social and regional disparities among member states and their citizens.

Within this paradigm of cohesion, we have defined our Presidency priorities and assigned them to four pillars of action. Pillar 1 regards a Europe of convergence. Our Presidency aims to contribute to ensuring convergence and cohesion in Europe to enable sustainable and equitable development for all citizens and member states by enhancing competitiveness, closing development gaps, facilitating social progress, promoting connectivity and digitalisation, stimulating entrepreneurship and strengthening industrial policy. Taking forward the negotiation process on the 2021-2027 multi-annual financial framework will be an overarching objective throughout our Presidency.

Pillar 2 relates to a safer Europe. Our Presidency aims to consolidate a safer Europe through increased cohesion among EU member states in dealing with the new security challenges that threaten the safety of citizens and through supporting co-operation initiatives in this field. Migration will continue to be the subject of intense debate in Europe and our action on the internal and external management aspects of migration must be comprehensive.

Pillar 3 deals with Europe as a stronger global actor. During our mandate, we will aim to further consolidate the global role of the EU through promoting the enlargement policy, a more active role for Europe in Africa and south Asia, promoting multilateralism, European action in neighbouring countries, further implementing the global strategy, offering the necessary resources for the EU and implementing all its global commitments. EU action in the eastern neighbourhood will benefit from a favourable context during the first semester of 2019, in which when we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the launch of the Eastern Partnership. The enlargement policy as an instrument capable of extending stability and prosperity across Europe will represent another important topic which contributes to a safer and a more prosperous future for the European Union.

Pillar 4 regards a Europe of common values. Our Presidency aims to stimulate the solidarity and cohesion of the EU by promoting policies to fight discrimination, encourage equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women, and increase citizens' involvement in European debates. All EU policies and action should be underpinned by European values and principles as provided by the European treaties. The advancement of the European project should be progressed with a united, inclusive and open approach among all member states. There must not be divisions throughout the Union. This is a key message to reinforce citizens’ trust.

On the calendar of the Romanian Presidency there will be thousands of technical meetings and hundreds of other important meetings in Brussels, Luxembourg, Strasbourg and Bucharest.

The coming six months offer a great opportunity to bring Romania closer to the citizens of the other member states and to present a European country deeply anchored in the cultural and spiritual tradition of the European Continent. We look forward to them.