Verklaring Van Rompuy na ontmoeting met premier van Malta (en)

EUCO 140/12

PRESSE 326

PR PCE 121

Remarks by Herman Van Rompuy

President of the European Council

following the meeting with Prime Minister of Malta

Lawrence Gonzi

I am happy to visit Malta again. I was here in the winter (two years ago), in the spring (a year ago), now, I'm enjoying the Maltese summer.

As usual, I have had a very fruitful meeting with Prime Minister Gonzi. Our discussion focused on the last European Council and the outlook for the European Councils to come. Let me say a few words about the key points of our discussion.

The last European Council of 28-29 June was about combining short-term action to stabilise the markets, medium term actions to stimulate growth and together with a longer-term vision on the way forward to strengthen our Economic and Monetary Union.

Establishing a longer-term perspective for the euro area is a pressing priority.

The European Council also discussed my report on the future of the Economic and Monetary Union that I presented at the request of the Heads of State or Government. The decisions on the setting up of a single supervisory mechanism for banks, involving the ECB, is a major breakthrough and it is already a first result of our common EMU report.. The Eurozone leaders have asked the Council to work in a very speedy way so that we can have results by the end of the year.

The European Council agreed on a method to take forward our work on those four building blocks. As President of the European Council, I have been invited to develop a specific and time-bound road map, again in close cooperation with the Presidents of the Commission, the Eurogroup and the Central Bank. Member States will also be closely involved and there will also be consultations with the European Parliament. We will present a final report before the end of the year, with an interim report in October. The focus in the first report will be on what can be achieved under the current Treaties.

The decisions taken in the European Council will have an important impact on the work in the months to come. The Compact for Growth and Jobs needs to be implemented quickly.

We have also discussed the economic situation in Europe and in Malta, and the reforms planned by the government.

We had an exchange of views on the Arab Spring, in particular developments in Libya and Egypt.

Finally, I would like to take the opportunity to say that I am very concerned about current developments in Romania regarding the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary, which are fundamental principles on which our Union is based. I will contact the Romanian Prime Minster and President to discuss this issue..