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The foreign ministers discussed draft conclusions for the European Council. According to Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, Estonia is satisfied with the conclusions by the presidency. “Of the topics Estonia suggested, both the reference to cybercrime and the stronger wording of the European Neighbourhood Policy were included,” said Paet. He added that Estonia was a strong supporter of the proposal to mention the Baltic Sea Region Strategy in the conclusions, which is also included.
The European Union foreign policy leaders also talked about EU enlargement. According to the Estonian foreign minister, the EU must adhere to the promises it made at last year’s Council in December. “Enlargement must continue to follow the same guidelines for enlargement strategy that were agreed upon in December 2006,” said Paet.
European Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner gave an overview of the Commission’s report “A Strong European Neighbourhood Policy”, which was published at the beginning of December. According to Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, the Neighbourhood Policy has produced some very good results, but the EU must contribute even more. “A profitability study of free trade agreements should be done and a subcommittee dealing with justice, freedom and security issues should be created, so that a dialogue on migration can begin between the European Union and Georgia,” said Paet. The foreign minister acknowledged that it is not possible to endlessly delay the action plans, which are starting to become out-of-date. It sends the wrong message to the partners that are making an effort to complete the action plans on time. “Estonia supports the potential start of a discussion over how to continue communicating with ENP nations,” said Paet. “We hope that the next presidencies and the European Commission continue to further develop the Neighbourhood Policy.”
At the foreign ministers’ working lunch, the EU’s part in the Kosovo status question and the situation in Iran were discussed. The EU Representative in the Troika Ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger gave an overview of the situation in the Western Balkans to the foreign ministers. According to Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, it is in everybody’s best interest to find a solution to the situation as quickly as possible. “Preserving the unity of the EU and western nations is essential to this process,” said Paet. The Estonian foreign minister also said that it is necessary for the EU to maintain its leading role in the process, and that a European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) mission should be sent to Kosovo as soon as possible.
On the topic of finding a solution to the issues in Iran, Foreign Minister Paet said it is important that all EU member states work together to ensure that Iran does not become a nation with nuclear weapons. “In order to regain the trust of the international community, Iran must bring its nuclear program up to the standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the UN Security Council,” said Paet.
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