This May 9 we celebrate Europe Day, marking the 71st
anniversary of the Schuman Declaration that paved the way for our unity and for
the second year under the trying circumstances presented by the
COVID-19
pandemic.
اضافة اعلان
Europe Day celebrations this year also coincide with the
10th anniversary of the establishment of the European External Action Service
(EEAS), the EU’s foreign policy and diplomatic arm. We thus celebrate Europe
Day with a special motto: “EU External Action: serving a stronger Europe in the
world”. And this is how we have acted, despite — and perhaps, because of —
COVID-19 and its insulating effect; the EU has, in fact, showcased its strength
as a multilateral and a compassionate actor, working as one with its different
elements (its institutions, its member states) and with its partners around the
world.
Marking Europe Day is always an occasion for us to reflect
on lessons that may be drawn from the European unification project. This is an
experience that can certainly be shared with our partner countries in the
Southern Neighbourhood, our close neighbors: turning conflict and competition
into cooperation and development. The European architecture, which is founded
on democratic values and principles developed over 71 years, offers peace,
security, justice, and economic prosperity to our citizens. We hope to see
these same conditions and values prevail in our neighboring countries,
including Jordan, which has itself entered a key milestone this year, having
marked its centennial.
While the EEAS works to promote the European values
globally, supports multilateralism, defends and promotes fundamental rights,
democratic values, and the rule of law, during the past year, the pandemic has
inspired us to work hand in hand with the EU member states and the European
financial institutions to assume another different, but no less important,
role. United, we worked to express our solidarity as “Team Europe”, in support
of one another in the face of a pandemic that has affected each and every
aspect of our lives, and to support our friends and partners around the world
by setting large-scale humanitarian and assistance operations.
Acknowledging the challenging times that we have been living
in, the EEAS, the EU member states, and European financial institutions have
stepped up their support for partner countries to help them navigate through
the
COVID-19 crisis. While the pandemic has widened divisions, the EU has
sought to narrow them by ensuring that our friends and neighbors are given an
equitable chance to secure vaccines. Through our support to the development of
the COVAX facility, countries like Jordan have received vaccines to inoculate
their populations, including refugees — a gesture admired and acknowledged
globally.
We have also come together to help ease, as much as
possible, the socioeconomic impact of the pandemic, supporting governments in
their effort to strike a balance between preserving people’s lives, while
maintaining livelihoods. In Jordan, Team Europe has provided additional funding
to help mitigate the economic impact of COVID-19, with direct support to the
state budget, as well as technical cooperation and support to the four pillars
of the response to the crisis: Health, social protection, education, and
economic recovery.
Under difficult COVID-19 conditions, the Brussels Conference
on the future of Syria and the region took place virtually in March, which was
more than a donor’s conference. It was an opportunity to put the spotlight on
Syria 10 years after the start of the crisis, stress the need for urgent
progress in the political process as set out in UNSCR 2254, and recognize the
role of refugee hosting countries and support their efforts.
This year, we celebrate Europe Day more united than ever in
our commitment to face COVID-19 and its devastating impact on world economies
and societies together. We look forward to the next 10 years of a more
successful cooperation, under different, more positive circumstances.
What is also certain is that the past year has demonstrated
how Europe can stand united, whilst also extending a helping hand to its
friends and neighbors.
Happy Europe Day!
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