IRAK DIE WIEGE DER ZIVILISATION

LE MONDE LATVIA
Edgars Skuja
“The Presidency of the Council of the European Union
will once more highlight Latvia on the map of Europe“
Interview: Petra Stix
The Freedom Monument,
at the heart of the Latvian
capital Riga, symbolises
the unity, independence
and freedom of the Latvian
people.
Ambassador Edgars Skuja explains why the grinding stone is the symbol of Latvia‘s
Presidency of the Council of the European Union, and the three principal priorities
for Europe during his country’s presidency.
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PARLAMENTSDIREKTION/BKA/GEORG STEFANIK SECRETGARDENSTUDIO/ VALTS KLEINS, WWW.DDL.LV
Cercle Diplomatique: For the first time in the history of the
EU, Latvia has assumed the presidency of the Council of the
European Union. What will be the biggest challenges of the
forthcoming six months for your country?
Edgars Skuja: We started with a prepared program
and main priorities for the six-month period. It
has also to be seen within a context of the trio: Italy,
Latvia and Luxemburg. But real life brought in its
dramatic modifications. And I dare say that the attack
on the main office of the Charlie Hebdo magazine
in Paris has again confirmed the need for a strict
counter-terrorism policy. This tragic event is evidence
of threats posed to one of the fundamental
values of European democracy – the freedom of
speech and expression.
With the crisis in Ukraine, there were unprecedented
challenges to national and European security.
Now, an agreement between the leaders of Russia,
Ukraine, Germany and France on the Ukraine crisis
offers hope, with a ceasefire from February 15th, followed
by the withdrawal of heavy weapons. We fully
support this agreement and hope that it will be fully
implemented.
As to the Presidency’s primary tasks, we have to
continue to implement two broad objectives: to fully
overcome the economic and financial crisis, and to
promote stability, security and development in the
European neighbourhood and all over the world.
Our Presidency‘s symbol is the grinding stone, which
is a sign of tradition for Latvians, but also an emblem
of innovation and change - it represents both stability
and movement.
What do you think the benefits for your country will be, as a
result of the presidency of the Council of the EU?
The Presidency will show our identity and ability
as Europeans. I have no doubt that the preparations
for the Presidency and the Presidency itself will
make our public administration and society in Latvia
more experienced and more confident. Following on
from a year when Riga was the European Capital of
Culture, the Presidency’s public diplomacy and culture
programme will once more highlight Latvia on
the map of Europe.
In a close dialogue with non-governmental organisations
and social partners at home, and with Italy
and Luxembourg in the Presidency Trio, Latvia has
defined three principal priorities for Europe during
its presidency in the first semester of 2015.
The first priority of the Presidency is the enhancement
of Europe’s competitiveness. In practical
terms, this will mean hard work on the drafting of a
new investment plan for the EU, the so-called “Juncker
plan”, the establishment of the Energy Union,
and the strengthening of the Banking Union, to put
Europe back on the path of long-term growth.
The second priority is the development of a Digital
Agenda. This means the mainstreaming of the
digital agenda in EU policies, increased data security,
cybersecurity, and the promotion of the EU’s Digital
Single Market to increase the digital competitiveness
of the European Union.
Thirdly, Latvia’s EU Presidency will also turn attention
to enhancing the EU’s global and regional role. I
wish to place a special emphasis on this priority, due
to its strong foreign policy dimension.
Latvia’s Presidency will focus on the strengthening
of EU cooperation with the Eastern Partnership
countries. On 22nd May, Riga will host the Eastern
Partnership Summit. I am certain that this will prove
to be a historic milestone, one of the most significant
events of the Presidency, with a number of challenging
tasks. The Riga Summit should send a signal
that the European Union has clear interests in the
strengthening and continuation of the Eastern Partnership.
Secondly, the Riga Summit will take stock of
the fulfilment of objectives set by the Vilnius Summit
and provide a preliminary assessment of the implementation
of the Association Agreements. An assistance
programme should be prepared to support
The beautiful coastline of
the Baltic Sea.
Edgars Skuja was born on 20th February, 1966 in
Valmiera, Latvia. He is a Latvian diplomat and is the
current Ambassador of Latvia to Austria.
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