Partnership and cooperation can bring us out of crisis : EU Ambassadors

Today, 9 May 2020, the European Union celebrates the 70th anniversary of the historic “Declaration of 9 May” delivered by French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, one of the EU’s founding fathers. In his declaration, Schuman called on France and Germany to pool their production of coal and steel under a common High Authority, in a bold move designed to ban war for ever. This message marked the beginning of what today is the European Union.

The EU project started to take shape in the early years of the 20th century, when France and the UK decided to coordinate in order to better control the price of wheat. Trade and economy remained the principal  drivers of this project as shown by the number of Free Trade Agreements signed since the birth of the European Commission in 1957 (Treaty of Rome). Jacques Delors, as President of the European Commission from 1985 to 1995, built a more political Europe with the adoption of the Maastricht Treaty (1992) and, in 2009, of the Lisbon Treaty.

To shape the EU was not an easy journey. Endless European summits have had to be convened in order to forge compromises. As Jean Monnet, another EU founding father, put it in his Memoirs: “People only accept change when they are faced with necessity, and only recognize necessity when a crisis is upon them”. Crises have led to more Europe, to a better Europe. Today, the EU of 27 Member States constitutes an area of freedom, prosperity, and successful integration.

The EU has no equivalent in the world. It is a regional integrated organization, a mix of a “Federation of Europe”, as Robert Schuman wished it – with a European Parliament, a single currency, the euro –, and a Europe of Nations – embodied by the Council of the EU. At the United Nations, the EU enjoys since May 2011 an enhanced observer status that enables it to speak and to submit proposals on behalf of its Members. The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the EU in 2012 in recognition for its contribution to peace. 

The EU and its Member States are committed to a stable, prosperous and peaceful Iraq and Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). 

In the framework of the close relations and friendship between the EU and the Republic of Iraq, the EU has deployed important financial needs in order to support the development of the KRI, covering humanitarian assistance, education, vocational training, energy – green energy in particular –, water and sanitation, agriculture, health, culture, demining, Human Rights. The EU has also launched and financed projects run by UN agencies and international NGOs, in which Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish NGOs play a crucial role as implementing partners. EU Member States are running their own projects too.

EU support to the civilian aspects of Iraq’s security sector reform is a good example of our contribution to peace and stability in Iraq. The EU Advisory Mission Iraq, as one of EU’s 17 ongoing Common Security and Defence Policy missions in the world, was recently extended for two more years, until 30 April 2022. The recent attacks perpetrated by Da’esh (Islamic State) against Iraqi security forces have shown that efforts on security sector reform needed to continue. The KRG has been implementing a reform of the Peshmerga that shall also contribute significantly to improving security and deterrence.

The EU’s contribution to appeasing tensions with Iraq’s neighbours such as Iran and Syria is another example of our dedication to peace and commitment towards strengthening multilateralism. Together with the five Permanent Members of the Security Council and Germany, the EU was instrumental in negotiating a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran. This agreement is holding despite the decision by the US to withdraw from it. EU’s Iran-trading mechanism INSTEX, designed to continue the trade of certain goods with Iran, was activated for the first time late March in order to export medical goods to COVID-19-hit Iran. The Brussels Conferences on Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region have proven to be instrumental in raising awareness and gathering support, including financially.

As we are facing the COVID pandemic, difficult economic prospects and increased tension in the Middle East, the European Union remains committed to its close partnership with Iraq, including the KRI, and to stability, progress and prosperity in the entire region.

Martin Huth is the Ambassador of the European Union to Iraq. Vincent-Guillaume Poupeau is the head of the European Union Liaison Office in Erbil.