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Here is the text of the majority agreement on the ESM

3 years ago babelfish

Here is the text of the majority agreement on the ESM

The draft of the agreement reached in the majority of the government on the ESM that excites the 5 Stars, but in the text of the ESM we talk as little as nothing …

at the European Council meeting of 10 and 11 December 2020, in which the Heads of State and Government of the member states will address the issues related to the response to the Covid-19 epidemic, climate change, security and the fight against terrorism, the European Union's relations with Turkey and the southern Mediterranean, as well as developments in the most topical foreign policy scenarios;

given that:

the European Council will proceed to examine the current epidemiological situation and discuss European coordination measures in response to the so-called "second wave" of the pandemic, with particular reference to the strategy adopted by the EU to accelerate the development, manufacture and dissemination of vaccines safe and effective against COVID-19 including the distribution of new products in different national contexts and the sharing of health data in Europe;

lastly, with its communication of 11 November "Building a European Health Union: Strengthening the EU's resilience to cross-border health threats, the European Commission announced that it will present a series of proposals to strengthen the framework for EU health security and to strengthen the role of key EU agencies in crisis preparedness and response. In this context, the World Health Summit, scheduled for 2021 in Italy, will allow the EU to guide international reflection on how to strengthen health security throughout the planet in the era of pandemics;

the European Council will also examine aspects of international cooperation in order to prevent and manage potential future pandemics more quickly and in a more coordinated way, including through a possible international treaty on pandemics within the United Nations and the World Health Organization;

in terms of combating COVID-19, strong solidarity and the maintenance of coordination are important also in view of the upcoming winter season and the Christmas holidays, in particular where the epidemiological situation leads to the introduction of new restrictions on freedom of movement within the Union;

also given that:

in the European Commission's Work Program for 2020, as updated following the Covid-19 pandemic, the European green deal is the engine of the new growth strategy, as a vector of both ecological and digital transition, functional to building a A fairer Europe with an economy at the service of people and society that gives back to nature more than it takes away; in this sense, major European investments and joint action by our country together with the European institutions and the other Member States will be the essential tools for responding to growth needs;

the investments must aim at the decarbonisation of the energy sector through the enhancement of renewable sources and eco-energy efficiency. The "green transition" must be the basis of development: use of energy, consumption patterns, strategic choices of production sectors according to the "Do No Harm" principle which establishes that an investment is green if only an environmental indicator improves without worsening the others, outlining the level of sustainability of the investment itself; a “market” of eco-sustainable products and services must be encouraged and therefore created, considering the sharing economy as a driving sector of the green transition ;

to achieve the EU climate neutrality goal by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement, the European Union must raise ambition levels for the next decade by bringing the greenhouse gas emission reduction target to at least 55% of 1990 levels by 2030 and update its policy framework for climate and energy by including this new target in the Commission's proposal for the first European climate law that needs to be adopted urgently;

the European Parliament, with the adoption of its negotiating mandate on the European climate law, has in turn asked for a reduction in emissions of 60% by 2030; set the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 and stressed the need to establish a greenhouse gas balance, defining the total remaining amount of emissions that could be emitted until 2050; the European Parliament also called for any European Commission initiative to be in line with the Union's climate objectives and for a European Climate Change Council – i.e. an independent scientific body to assess progress in this direction – to be established, as well as to confirm the call for phasing out fossil fuel subsidies by 31 December 2025;

as highlighted by the European Commission in the Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council "On the implementation of the framework directive on the strategy for the marine environment (Directive 2008/56 / EC)" of 25 June 2020, the achievement of the objectives of the Green Deal European Union is closely linked to the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, aimed at ensuring, through an ecosystem approach, that the cumulative pressures of human activities do not exceed levels that compromise the ability of ecosystems to remain healthy, clean and productive ;

the raising of the level of ambition in environmental matters will produce new production models of distribution and consumption, new employment thanks to innovation in green technologies and digitization, placing at the center the health and quality of life of our citizens as fundamental 'assets' for growth and will contribute to the development and global competitiveness of the European economy in the long term by promoting innovation in so-called green technologies and Nature Based Solutions (NBS) for the restoration of territorial security;

all Member States will be called upon to contribute to the achievement of this objective, also on the basis of principles of fairness and solidarity and by ensuring that the competitiveness of the European Union market is preserved globally and taking into account the specificities of each Member State by going to redressing forms of unfair competitiveness within the single market;

it will be necessary to mobilize public and private resources from the Member States, but at the same time to introduce own resources of the EU, to realize the significant investments that this level of ambition requires. The use of funds from the Multiannual Financial Framework and the Recovery Fund, including the Just Transition Mechanism, will be fundamental in this context, and it is with this in mind that the European Commission has decided to reserve at least 30 per cent of total expenditure for build on the next climate target MFF;

based on the indications on the drafting of the National Recovery and Resilience Plans provided by the European Commission last September 17, the NRPs will have to allocate at least 37% of the resources to the green transition, with reforms and investments in the field of energy, transport, decarbonisation of industry, the circular economy, water management and biodiversity, with a view to achieving climate neutrality by 2050 and significantly reducing gas emissions by 2030;

further assessed that:

the European Council will also ask the Commission to present, by the first half of 2021, a legislative proposal for the development of common and global standards of Green Finance accompanied by parameters of flexibility based on the diversity of the territories;

the European Council also intends to request the Commission to assess how all economic sectors can best contribute to the 2030 goal and to present the necessary legislative proposals linked by an assessment of the economic, employment, environmental, cultural and social impact at Member States, calling on the Commission to: consider how to reform the ETS to achieve the qualitative and quantitative objectives set and while preserving its integrity; increase potential reductions in those sectors which will not be covered by the ETS; introduce a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism to ensure the environmental integrity of Union policies and avoid carbon emissions in compliance with WTO rules;

also due to the position of co-presidency of COP26 and of the G20 presidency, there is the need to profile Italy's role as an ambitious country. At the same time, the path towards the achievement of new climate goals must take into account the need to guarantee and prepare for European sustainability and competitiveness in the transition path. Therefore, Italy will work to reach the goal of climate neutrality by 2050, creating the conditions for new opportunities for economic growth and new jobs, while ensuring the security of energy supplies and the competitiveness of our production system, while preserving cohesion. social with new forms of income support and strengthening the empowerment of women and the new generations;

whereas:

the European Council will discuss the issue of security, in particular the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, including the fight against illegal online content of artificial intelligence manipulations (deepfake) on which the Commission proposal on the Digital Services Act was presented which aims to strengthen the accountability of internet platforms;

in line with what was declared by the Ministers of the Interior on 13 November last, it is necessary to reiterate a firm condemnation of the recent terrorist attacks and to confirm full solidarity in the fight against terrorism and in the affirmation of common values;

of primary importance is therefore the adoption of the new Action Plan against terrorism with which Europe intends to strengthen cooperation and coordination between the security services and to equip the border police with the modern technologies they need, as well as step up efforts to combat extreme radicalism and protect common public spaces, thus improving the functioning of the Schengen area;

also taking into account that:

the United Kingdom left the European Union and its institutions on 31 January 2020, while still seeing the European legal framework applied until the end of the transitional period on 31 December 2020;

the transitional period has not yet seen the signing of an agreement on future relations and, therefore, it is urgent to prepare citizens, businesses and the public sector for an exit that could, to date, result without an agreement between the parties;

therefore, the possibility of a lack of agreement on the expiry of the transition is concretely looming, which will involve the passage from a situation – the current one – in which the United Kingdom is de facto treated as a Member State to one of non-regulated (or regulated , as appropriate, on the basis of pre-existing international legal instruments). If there is a lack of agreement, it may therefore be necessary to add a series of emergency measures (so-called "contingency") to the work on the preparations (so-called "readiness") for the new status of the United Kingdom starting from 1 January 2021. to cushion the negative effects;

the change in the international scenario appears to be significant in the aftermath, in the United States of America, of elections that mark a change at the top of the American administration with the election of the democratic candidate Joe Biden, who among his first acts nominated as his Vice-President Senator Kamala Harris and former Secretary of State John Kerry as the President's Special Envoy for Climate, heralding the intention to include the United States in the Paris climate agreement as the first act of the new administration;

in line with its conclusions of October 2020, the European Council will also revert to the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and relations with Turkey;

the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean is particularly complex and raises many concerns, especially for the repercussions it could entail in terms of stability of the entire region with the consequence of affecting new migratory flows towards Europe, in particular towards the Mediterranean countries ;

the President of the Commission Ursula von der Leyen called for an end to the provocations in the Eastern Mediterranean, asking Turkey to demonstrate a responsible and constructive attitude towards the resolution of the dispute, under penalty of the use of various instruments by the Union , including the sanctioning approach;

the European Union expects Turkey to respect international law and recognizes it as a partner whose collaboration is necessary for the stability of the region and for promoting shared policies for the use of the resources of the Eastern Mediterranean;

the European Council will also hold a strategic discussion on EU relations with the southern neighborhood and on the process of supporting the democratic transformation of the area;

in 2020, the year in which the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Barcelona Process occurs, sees an objectively complex situation, because the pandemic has opened a new season of unprecedented challenges. COVID-19 has accelerated some trends already underway in the Southern Neighborhood: from economic growth to the tensions of open and ongoing conflicts;

found that:

a Euro Summit will be held in the margins of the European Council in an inclusive format;

the Eurogroup of 30 November 2020 agreed to proceed with the reform of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), with the signing of the revised treaty and the start of the national ratification procedures;

any decision on the use of the ESM health credit line is only taken following a prior and specific parliamentary debate and subject to the presentation by the Government of a needs analysis, as well as a detailed plan for the use of any financing;

the reform establishes a common support (so-called backstop) to the single resolution fund (SRF) of banks in the form of a credit line from the ESM, as a guarantee of last resort. Ministers also agreed to anticipate the introduction of such joint support by early 2022;

finally considering that:

at the beginning of her mandate, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen promised to convene a Conference on the Future of Europe, to give a renewed impetus to the process of European integration and to promote an active role of European citizens in building the future of Europe;

the Conference was supposed to have started on 9 May 2020 but was postponed due to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, first to autumn 2020 and then under the German Presidency of the Council of the EU which ends on 31 December; however, a definitive agreement has not yet been reached through the interinstitutional agreement of the Council, Parliament and Commission, which should have resulted in a joint declaration of the three institutions;

the pandemic, highlighting some weaknesses of the Union, has nevertheless contributed, in order to provide a unitary and adequate EU response to the crisis, to a real paradigm shift, from a prevailing logic of macroeconomic surveillance and rigor in public spending policies to greater risk sharing, joint investment projects and the issuance of European securities; launching the Conference as soon as possible is therefore particularly important for the future evolution of the Union, to make it more competitive, fair and closer to the citizens.

therefore, the Government undertakes:

in relation to the Covid emergency:

– to ensure the strengthening of the European Vaccine Strategy, which allows the development, production and distribution of safe and effective vaccines with fair and timely access for European citizens, as well as to encourage any coordinated policy that provides a common European response the pandemic, with objective information on the spread of the virus and effective efforts to contain it;

– to support the use of the full potential of the "COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility (COVAX)" for timely, fair and equitable access to vaccines in all countries and, within the framework of the European Union, to promote in the WTO an exemption on the basis of the Marrakech agreement for Covid-19 vaccines from the ordinary regime of the TRIPS Agreement on patents and intellectual property, with the aim of guaranteeing free and universal availability of vaccines;

– to express satisfaction for the coordinated actions between Member States on the side of cooperation in medical research for vaccines and their distribution, aimed at guaranteeing fair and timely access for all European citizens, highlighting the Italian willingness to deepen the methods of coordination health in the EU through the examination of recent Communications and forthcoming legislative proposals by the Commission;

– to guarantee a European strategy of constant monitoring of the epidemiological emergency situation, promoting the use and interoperability of screening tracing tools and common anti-Covid precautionary measures in the EU, in order to keep the protection needs in balance health of workers and citizens, assistance to people, with those for the continuation of productive activities and mobility of people within the EU area, through the preparation of a homogeneous European pandemic plan among all member countries and the acceleration the process of creating the European health union;

regarding the environmental and climate change issues

  • to support the European Commission's proposal for a net reduction of at least 55 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to the levels recorded in 1990, a political objective that remains fundamental to effectively address the challenge of climate change, and to reaffirm the leading role that the Union is called to play in the global fight against climate change and to support any acceleration that might be adopted at European level in order to achieve climate neutrality;

  • to implement at European level every measure that favors the transition from a linear economy to a circular economy based on an efficient use of natural resources, on correct water management and on a virtuous waste cycle that aims, in compliance with European hierarchy, to the reduction, reuse and recovery of materials and energy, also encouraging the development of eco-efficient production systems based on bioeconomy and eco- design;

  • to promote awareness and information campaigns for European citizens to launch school environmental education programs and good environmental practices, including the promotion of initiatives for sustainable mobility and climate change mitigation;

– to request that due consideration be given to what Member States have achieved so far in terms of reducing emissions, in order to avoid penalizing those Member States which, like Italy, have already made significant efforts to successfully achieve the objectives at 2020;

  • to promote, in the appropriate fora and within the scope of its competences, all the measures necessary to achieve the greenhouse gas reduction targets agreed at international and European level, taking into account the environmental, social and economic benefits associated with the reduction of emissions and climate-altering gases, among whose mitigation measures the protection of soil fertility, the reduction of erosion, the increase of organic matter, also through the natural capture of carbon dioxide, the restoration of biodiversity and terrestrial take on strategic importance that marine and of the priority habitats of the Natura 2000 List and UNESCO MAB, including terrestrial and marine forests;

  • to support the fight against climate change, which is of particular importance for our country also in consideration of the occurrence of extreme weather phenomena, increasingly visible and pervasive, against which the European Union can and must play a leading role in policies increasingly necessary mitigation and resilience;

  • to promote a system of international relations of the Union and of the individual Member States in which the theme of the fight against climate change is an inspiration, together with the defense of democratic principles and freedom, for relations with non-EU states, also in terms of collaboration and development of new equity opportunities;

– to contribute to the achievement of the European climate neutrality objectives by 2050, through measures for the gradual decarbonisation of the energy sector, with particular attention to the European strategy for renewable hydrogen presented by the European Commission on 8 July last, for the restoration and the protection of biodiversity, for the achievement of the good ecological status (GSE) of the soil, inland waters, the sea and the air, the hydraulic and ecological reconnection of rivers to protect and prevent hydrogeological instability and erosion coastal, also based on NBS, for the protection of monuments, villages and historic centers, in consideration of the high presence of Unesco sites in our country and the threat that climate change represents for this heritage, for the redefinition of the system of transport in a green key, favoring public transport, the improvement of air quality, the enhancement of and renewable sources, and for the promotion of the circular economy; objectives to be pursued also through policies capable of relaunching economic development and creating new jobs, including through a national plan for female and youth employment, the definition of new profiles within the public administration to be employed in the various related tasks energy requalification and the green transition, while promoting the ecological transition, the digitalization and modernization of public administrations, with simplification of procurement procedures in compliance with transparency and traceability, sustainable economic and social development and a new industrial strategy for the Union European;

– to approve as soon as possible the 2021-2027 MFF negotiating package integrated with the Next Generation EU instrument, overcoming the vetoes set by some Member States, in order to ensure the rapid and timely start of projects and avoid delays in accessing European funds allocated overtime, which will have an overall spending target of at least 30% in environmental sustainability measures and the fight against climate change and its effects, also increasing the system of own resources within the multiannual program, also to cover the obligations reimbursement of the financing of the same instrument for recovery, towards the creation of a European tax system;

– to support the need to pursue the construction of a more equitable and sustainable European society, attentive to the issues of children and young people, education, training and research, with an economy at the service of people, capable of eliminating gender gaps in the social and economic field, and capable of achieving more complete social and territorial cohesion within the Union;

regarding the Brexit issue:

– confirm full support for the Commission's Task Force in trying to reach, in the short time left, an agreement that respects the fundamental principles of the EU position, in particular on the issues of trade and “governance”;

– reiterate the need for London to fully implement the Withdrawal Agreement, in particular the provisions on acquired citizens' rights and the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland;

– work with the other 26 Member States for an orderly exit of the United Kingdom from the EU and for the conclusion of a withdrawal agreement based on a solidarity approach that protects the integrity of the Internal Market and the principles of fair competition, as well as the safeguarding customs union on Irish territory;

– strengthen the withdrawal preparation activities both at EU and national level, including possible emergency measures aimed at mitigating the negative consequences of a possible no-deal;

regarding the issue of security

– on the eve of the presentation of the Commission's new "European plan to fight terrorism", support its action aimed at identifying and filling the gaps in the current system, strengthening Eurojust , increasing the structures for monitoring prisons and for European information sharing and the coordination system for de-radicalization programs;

– to support the Commission's proposal to strengthen Europol's mandate to prevent violent extremism and fight terrorism and the dissemination of illegal content online and to call for the swift adoption of the proposal to prevent the dissemination of terrorist content online; to promote, in this context, reflection on the possibility of attributing to the European Public Prosecutor's office tasks and institutional prerogatives for the fight against terrorism;

with regard to foreign policy scenarios

– to support the strengthening of transatlantic relations to relaunch a multilateral system of relations capable of combating climate change, strengthening the global response to COVID-19, supporting free and fair international trade, relaunching cooperation in the digital and technological fields and promoting security and democratic values;

– to take action to promote the essential values ​​and interests of Europe in the world, in relations with third countries, with particular attention to safeguarding the principles of democracy and the rule of law, in line with the strategic priorities of the von der Leyen Commission (environment , management of energy resources, digitization, security, education, migration) and with the review process of the Southern Neighborhood Policy maintaining the conditionality of respect for fundamental rights as a prerequisite for access to resources, in the wake of the agreements of last July and the most recent bilateral agreements;

– with regard to the events taking place in the Eastern Mediterranean and relations with Turkey: to take action to reduce the tensions in progress, promoting a European line that combines firmness towards Turkish unilateral actions, but also dialogue with Ankara to preserve the relevant areas of cooperation and tackle the problem of maritime jurisdictions at the root, so as to allow shared policies on the use of resources of the Eastern Mediterranean while continuing with the enlargement of the EU in the Balkan countries, starting from the negotiations already underway with the 'Albania;

  • with regard to the European Southern Neighborhood Policy, to reiterate the opportunity of a relaunch of relations with the Southern Neighborhood, with a specific focus on the influence on Libya and on the new pact for migration , based on horizontal themes of mutual interest, such as the management of Mediterranean common goods including the sea resource. Still on the subject of common interests, define more precisely with the neighboring countries the management plans of the national maritime space, in order to cover all strategic maritime activities and sectors, as well as management-conservation measures;

with regard to the Eurosummit:

  • to take note of the negotiation changes made such as the advance of the "common back stop of the Single Resolution Fund for banking crises" and the new context of European fiscal policies implemented starting from the EU agreement on the MFF of 21 July last and negotiated with European Commission and Parliament. To reiterate that this reform cannot be considered conclusive, given the logic of the package already reiterated by Parliament, precisely in the light of the latest choices made within the EU which describe a new season of necessary changes. Themes that will be central to the Conference on the Future of Europe with prospects for changing the institutional and economic architecture of the EU;

  • to finalize the political agreement reached with the Eurogroup and the Eurosummit agenda on the reform of the ESM Treaty;

  • to support the profound modification of the Stability and Growth Pact before its reintroduction, the implementation of the Edis, the European bank deposit insurance system, and also a process that goes beyond the intergovernmental character of the ESM itself, which are priorities for our Country in order to build a new season of European integration. The progress of the work on these issues on the agenda will be verified in view of the parliamentary ratification of the reform of the ESM treaty;

as regards the Conference on the Future of Europe

– to request, in all appropriate fora at European level, the rapid start of the Conference on the future of Europe, to discuss the political and institutional reforms necessary to relaunch and strengthen the EU integration process, also in light of the unprecedented measures adopted and of the extraordinary interventions implemented as a response to the Covid-19 emergency;

– to favor, in the concrete development of the Conference, the involvement of the national parliaments of the EU and the new and real involvement of European citizens even in times of pandemic, guaranteeing participation in the gender balance and social complexity of the country;

– to support the start of the work of the Conference on the future of Europe for the strengthening of the powers of the European Parliament and the transition to majority vote to overcome the veto power;

– launch a reform of the Union budget in the sign of the attribution to the European Union of an autonomous fiscal capacity, independent of national budgets, as well as of a co-responsibility of the European Parliament in the creation of new EU own resources;

– to foster all forms of dialogue that make it possible to tackle the issue relating to the new competences of the Union, in particular in the fields in which the Covid-19 pandemic has shown the need to envisage European-level policies, evaluating on the basis of the results of the Conference the next steps to take.

This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/ecco-il-testo-dellaccordo-nella-maggioranza-sul-mes/ on Tue, 08 Dec 2020 18:53:58 +0000.