Finland folded under the pressures of the large EU members

EDITORIAL

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The European Union summit held last weekend in Brussels could be described as a partial success. The heads of state and government could not find common ground on whom should be chosen as the new European Commission President. Agreement was reached, on the other hand, on the EU Constitution, but in a fashion that does not speak well of the member-states' aspirations towards the common European interest.
      The summit demonstrated once again the weight of the big countries of the Union: they managed to get the texts they wanted included in the document, while the smaller countries had to grin and bear it.
      A British civil servant described the spirit of the meeting aptly enough in a remark overheard in the corridors: "This is no happy family gathering." The new 25-member European Union started life with a summit meeting that did indeed resemble more closely a vicious scrap over the will than a joyous family get-together.
      And this time the decision-making was not made unduly difficult by the enlargement of the Union, since the worst of the biting and scratching was from representatives of the old EU.
     
The negotiations followed two clearly defined battle-lines. One was between the small member-states and their larger colleagues, and the other split three of the big countries into two camps: on the one side were France and Germany, with Britain standing alone in opposition.
      Finland was active in the construction of a bloc formed of the smaller countries. The bloc nevertheless crumbled in the hurly-burly of the discussions, and Finland was obliged to give up both of its important stated objectives: its own commissioner and a clear weighting of the votes in the Council of Ministers in favour of the smaller countries.
      Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen found himself having to seek solace from more modest victories, and from the fact that the agreement drafted in Brussels is nevertheless a valuable step forward and a package that improves the efficiency of the Union.
      All the same, there is no getting around the fact that the Finns came off second best in the fight with the big countries. What was new this time was that Finland put up stiff resistance and was in the thick of organising the opposition.
     
In the run-up to the summit there had been some pious speculation that the recent European Parliament elections, which proved in most cases to be a protest against incumbent ruling parties, would pressure the Union's leaders into building a clearer and more easily understood sense of community within the EU.
      It did not turn out that way: the summit decision-makers had no wish to return home with their tails between their legs to tell of defeats suffered in Brussels.
      This was a paramount concern for the British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair has already promised U.K. citizens a referendum on the EU constitution. Opponents of the document are believed to hold the upper hand in Britain at present. Blair knew on his arrival in Brussels that he would not have a prayer in that referendum if the U.K. were seen now to be compromising on its stated objectives.
     
Blair's tactics in using the referendum-card annoyed France and Germany. The normal polite diplomatic language familiar from EU meetings vanished, and the British representatives pointed out to the Franco-German pairing that the Union's business is determined today in a Europe of 25, not a Europe of six, or two, or one.
      For his part, the German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder interpreted the European Parliament's conservative grouping's actions as "a party political powerplay" when the conservatives did not put forward the name of Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, the French and German favourite, as their candidate for the Commission Presidency, but instead picked a name that would appeal to the British contingent, namely the External Affairs Commissioner Chris Patten, a former Tory minister.
     
Nonetheless, the summit had a happy ending - at least from the viewpoint of the big countries. Peace will prevail until the moment when the twenty-five return to the search for a new Commission President. And if this plum job goes to a representative from one of the big fish, the defeat of the minnows in Brussels will only be further accentuated.
     
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 20.6.2004


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Prime Minister Vanhanen praises agreement on EU constitution (21.6.2004)

Helsingin Sanomat