Cyprus’ Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna, and EESC President Séamus Boland
A discussion at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) plenary revealed close alignment between the Cyprus Presidency’s priorities and the Committee’s own work programme. The Cyprus presidency’s five priorities are: security and preparedness, competitiveness, openness to the world, a Union of values that leaves no one behind, and a robust long-term EU budget for an autonomous Union.
Following a presentation by Cyprus’s Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna, EESC members discussed the presidency’s priorities, which are encapsulated by the presidency’s motto An Autonomous Union. Open to the World. The Cyprus presidency invited the EESC to contribute its expertise through fourteen exploratory opinions aimed at providing recommendations on EU legislative proposals and strategic issues while reflecting the views of the social partners and organised civil society.
EESC President Séamus Boland noted, ‘The priorities of the Cyprus presidency resonate closely with my programme, which focuses on opportunity, security and resilience, with the fight against poverty at its core.’ Deputy Minister Marilena Raouna underlined the importance of early and close cooperation with organised civil society: ‘Employers, workers and civil society organisations must remain at the heart of European policy-making.’
The president of the Civil Society Organisations’ Group, Cillian Lohan, stated: ‘We support the programme, which addresses the key topics in today’s stressed geopolitical context; but we should continue to call for stronger, more systemic civil society involvement in all major EU policies.’
The president of the EESC’s ECO section, Elena Calistru, commended Cyprus’s outreach to organised civil society but also recognised that the Cyprus presidency had a tough file ahead – the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF): ‘Here is where flexibility matters, but not at the expense of cohesion, participation and trust. A strategic budget needs real resources and strong civil society.’
Ionuț Sibian referred to the ‘AgoraEU’ programme and asked whether the Cyprus presidency might ‘support the EESC’s request to establish a formal group for civil dialogue. We believe civil society should be part of the dialogues during the implementation of the Agora programme.’
Juraj Sipko pointed out that: ‘We are operating under a high level of uncertainty. We are losing the multilateralism we have been building for more than 80 years, so we urge the presidency to consider this as a guiding principle for the liberalisation of trade, the flow of capital, the movement of people and the standard of living worldwide.’
Orlando Monteiro da Silva emphasised that: ‘There is a clear strategic gap: diplomacy should be a beacon guiding the Cyprus presidency priorities. This is a way to calm things down while we prepare to act, to mitigate conflicts and promote certainty. It means consistent and reliable communication. This would not reduce the existing priorities, but it is essential for an independent and autonomous Union.’
Read the EESC’s press release: https://www.eesc.europa.eu/en/news-media/press-releases/cyprus-presidency-highlights-partnership-eesc-and-organised-civil-society
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