EUROPE DAY CELEBRATED ON MAY 9
Noyan Tapan
May 10 2007
YEREVAN, MAY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Europe Day is celebrated on May 9. In
his speech in Paris in 1950, the then foreign minister of France
Robert Schuman propsed a new form of political arrangement in Europe,
whose objective was to rule out war betwen European nations. As a
result of this statement, the European Union was created, and its
50th anniversary is celebrated this year.
According to Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Commissioner for External
Relations and Neighborhood Policy, over this period the EU has become
more than a trading body that coordinates trade and tariff policy of
EU member states.
Today the European Union is a political and economic project uniting
27 European countries and the population of over 450 million.
The EU is actively engaged in various spheres that pose greatest
challenges to mankind in the 21st century. The EU is a strategic
partner for countries around the world on such issues as international
terrorism, climate changes, AIDS/HIV.
The European Union is the largest donor in the world: it provides 60%
of development assistance. The European Commission allocates about
7 billion euros annually for this purpose.
In the words of B. Ferrero-Waldner, the EU’s goal is to relieve
poverty and provide humanitarian aid to those in need. "We are creating
cooperation in trade and investment areas," she said.
The EU launched the European Neighborhood Policy, within the framework
of which the EU signed an Action Plan with Armenia in November
2006. The reform priorities of the Action Plan are called upon to
strengthen democratic structures, human rights and the rule of law,
as well as to assist with economic development, poverty reduction,
regional cooperation and peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh
conflict.
According to Benita Ferrero-Waldner, at present the EU helps Armenia
with poverty reduction and implementation of administrative and
legislative reforsm by providing technical assistance in the sphere of
education, as well as budgetary assistance with reforms in agriculture
and the social sector.