3. The EU as a global player

The EU has developed from a Community with the aim of promoting internal stability through economic growth and trade to a Union with common policies in areas as diverse as agriculture, customs, the internal market and foreign policy. In order to address the challenges of globalisation and international conflicts, the Member States – including Denmark – have acknowledged that pooling efforts and increasing cooperation serve their interests best. On the basis of shared values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law, the EU has developed an outward-looking agenda in order to deal with globalisation and security as an active global player. Climate change, protection of the environment, energy security, migration, terrorism, free trade, employment and development are among the challenges addressed by the EU. The EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) is an integral part of Danish foreign policy.

Danish evacuees board a Danish chartered vessel in the port of Beirut on 24 July 2006 during the Lebanon conflict.
Photo: Mohamed Messara/EPA.

The enlargement of the EU, the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and energy issues are not part of the CFSP, but they relate to it. The enlargement has been important in securing peace and prosperity in Europe and has added weight to the EU as a global player. The ENP is important in terms of broadening the partnership with the Eastern and Southern neighbours, and energy security and climate change issues are becoming increasingly relevant to EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

EU countries and countries that have initiated accession negotiations with the EU

On 1 January 2007, the EU was enlarged with Bulgaria and Romania to include 27 member states. The EU is now negotiating with Croatia and Turkey for EU membership.

The European Neighbourhood Policy

The EU has an ambitious policy of strengthening its partnerships with its neighbours to the south and east through the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). Building on common values of democracy and human rights, these partnerships aim to bring stability and prosperity to the EU neighbourhood. Denmark is a strong and active supporter of this policy. The foundations of the policy were given an important impetus in Copenhagen in 2002, where the decision by the EU heads of state on the 2004 enlargement of the Union was reached, as this made the EU a direct neighbour of countries such as Ukraine and Belarus. The European Commission suggested new ideas for strengthening the policy in December 2006. An important priority for Denmark is free trade and movement towards a pan-European Economic Area. Enhanced people-to-people contacts, including student exchanges, and support for reform efforts are other key issues.

Enlargement

The EU has undertaken two enlargement rounds in the past years. In 2004, ten new countries became members of the EU and on 1 January 2007, Bulgaria and Romania joined the EU. So far the enlargement has proved successful in terms of promoting shared values, economic growth and employment through political and economic reforms in the new Member States. Detailed accession negotiations with Turkey and Croatia were initiated during 2006. However, the negotiations with Turkey were partly suspended in December 2006 due to Turkey’s failure to honour its commitment under the Ankara Protocol to allow direct traffic and trade between Turkey and the Republic of Cyprus. Denmark supports the EU’s enlargement strategy and will continue to work for the EU commitments to candidate and other countries, notably in the Western Balkans. Nonetheless, the EU’s capacity to absorb new members will also remain a priority throughout the continued enlargement process.

President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, talks about the dangers of global warming at a meeting with the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in Denmark in 2006.
Photo: Liselotte Sabroe, Scanpix.

Climate change and energy security

Energy security and climate change are issues that require global attention and action. Both issues are increasingly important, also in a foreign policy context.

Denmark supports the development of strong and coherent energy and climate policies for Europe. With regard to energy, Denmark pursues the key objectives of environmental sustainability, competitiveness and security of supply. At the same time, an integrated approach to climate and energy policy is needed, as energy consumption and production are the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Denmark played an active role at the European Council meeting in March 2007, where the European Energy Action Plan 2007/09 was agreed along with an ambitious EU climate policy towards a global and comprehensive post-2012 agreement. The Action Plan contains, among other things, binding agreements on renewable energy and bio fuel as well as indicative targets for energy efficiency, which will contribute significantly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the EU gave its support to a new international climate agreement to be reached in 2009.

The EU is highly dependent on imported energy. Currently, 50% of the total energy consumption is based on imports. This figure will increase to 70% within the next decades, unless action is taken to increase energy efficiency and promote renewable energy sources. Denmark has shown that it is possible to combine economic growth and the use of alternative energy sources. During the last 25 years, Denmark’s economy has grown more than 50% with almost no increase in energy consumption. In 2007, the Danish Government decided to increase the proportion of renewable energy in relation to the total energy consumption to 30% by 2025.

Energy is clearly becoming an important aspect of foreign policy, and the recent developments with gas and oil disputes have underlined the need for the EU to reduce its dependency on external suppliers. Promotion of an internal energy market will also contribute to making the EU Member States less dependent on particular energy sources and on a small number of suppliers. In addition, it is expected to improve sustainability through increased competition and to enable the EU to speak with one voice on external energy issues. Increased energy efficiency has foreign policy and trade dimensions as well, because it is an area where the EU in general and Denmark in particular have a great deal to offer to countries such as China and India.

Climate change poses a threat to achieving the foreign policy goal of security, stability and development. Denmark therefore supports that climate change being addressed in the context of the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and that the EU works for a global binding solution to limit greenhouse gas emissions. The EU has the potential to lead the world in the transformation from a high-carbon to a low-carbon global economy. The leadership was demonstrated by the agreement at the European Council meeting in March 2007 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% before 2020 and eventually by 30% as part of a wider global agreement. Leadership is also demonstrated through the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS). The ETS has the potential to steer the EU countries on a climate-friendly development path and to show that the EU is serious about its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In keeping with its commitment to address climate change, Denmark will be hosting the 15th Conference of Parties under the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 2009 (the so-called COP15 meeting).

The Common Foreign and Security Policy and the European Security and Defence Policy

No country is able to tackle today’s complex political issues on its own. Denmark therefore values the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and participates actively in the civilian aspect of European Security and Defence Policy missions². The EU’s added value in this regard is its ability to bring together a wide range of civilian and military instruments.

Through the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), the EU has with its various crisis management missions in Africa contributed to stability in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The mission in Aceh, Indonesia, supported the successful peace process after 30 years of fighting, and in the Democratic Republic of Congo, an ESDP mission supported the first democratic elections since independence. Progress has been made in improving strategic planning and coordination between the Council Secretariat, the Commission, the Members States and other international organisations in the field of foreign policy and crisis management. Drawing on these experiences, the EU will continue its efforts to share the responsibility for global security and to act as a global player. In other words, the EU is in the process of translating economic bargaining power into political bargaining power.

The Reform Treaty

Since the rejection by French and Dutch voters of the Constitutional Treaty in May and June 2005, the question of modernising the existing treaties has loomed large over the EU. The 27 Member States all agreed that the current EU institutions and working methods needed adjustments for the future. It was also acknowledged that it would be difficult to reach an acceptable final agreement between the 18 Member States that had ratified the Constitutional Treaty, France and the Netherlands, which rejected the treaty, and the seven Member States (including Denmark), which had suspended their ratification processes.

The 50th Anniversary of the signing of the Rome Treaty was celebrated in Berlin on 27 March 2007. On the day, the EU Heads of State and Government presented a declaration confirming the union’s fundamental values. At the same time, they presented guidelines for the future collaboration.
Photo: Yves Herman, Scanpix.

At the EU summit in June 2007, European leaders managed to break the deadlock, and an agreement was achieved on the most important elements of a new treaty, which will be named the Reform Treaty. The Reform Treaty will introduce a permanent President of the European Council, a common EU service for external relations and more flexible and effective decision-making procedures, including wider use of qualified majority voting. The Treaty will also increase the role of national parliaments in the EU and ensure greater transparency in the working methods of all EU institutions.

What the 27 European leaders agreed upon at the summit was not a new EU treaty in itself, but rather a clear and detailed mandate for an intergovernmental conference between the Member States on a new treaty. The scope of the mandate will allow the intergovernmental conference to be focused mainly on translating the content of the mandate into a draft treaty text. The conference was formally opened on 23 July 2007. It is due to conclude its work as soon as possible and at the latest before the end of 2007 in order for the Reform Treaty to enter into force in 2009, following the conclusion of national ratification procedures in the Member States.

2. Denmark has an op-out on decisions and actions of the EU which have defence/military implications. Denmark has also opted out of the economic and monetary union and the supranational part of the asylum, immigration and civil law cooperation of the European Union.