The European Political Community was proposed by the French presidentEmmanuel Macron at the Conference on the Future of Europe on 9 May 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine,[5] in his role as the president of the Council of the European Union (EU). The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, also put forward a similar proposal for the establishment of a "European geopolitical community".[6] On 23–24 June 2022, formation of the community was agreed to at a meeting of the European Council.[7][8] On 29 September 2022, the United Kingdom announced that it would participate in the community.[9] The group convened for the first time on 6 October 2022 with leaders from 44 states in attendance. Russia and Belarus were deliberately excluded from participation.[10] In January 2023, it was confirmed that San Marino had joined the community becoming its 45th participating state.[11][12] It has been reported that the heads of government of Andorra and Monaco will also attend the second summit bringing the number of members up to 47.[13][14]
Aim
In his address to the European Parliament on 9 May 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron proposed the European Political Community as "a new European organization" that would allow countries "that subscribe to our shared core values to find a new space for cooperation" on politics, security, energy, infrastructure, investment, and migration.[15]
The aim of the European Political Community is to provide a policy coordination platform for European countries across the continent and to foster political dialogue and cooperation in order to address issues of common interest, so as to strengthen the security, stability and prosperity of the European continent,[8] in particular in regard to the European energy crisis.[16][17]
strengthening the links between EU member states and Non-EU member states who share the same European values,
increasing cooperation between the member countries on a large scale of topics such as peace, security, energy, climate, migration and the current economic situation,
allowing candidate states to start taking part in some European projects, such as student and university exchanges.
Following a bilateral summit meeting between the leaders of the United Kingdom and France on 10 March 2023, it was stated in the joint declaration that the EPC should focus on energy, infrastructures, connectivity, cybersecurity, countering disinformation and migration.[19][20]
Structure
The European Political Community is envisaged as an intergovernmental forum for heads of states and governments similar to the G7 or G20 and upon establishment did not have its own secretariat, budget or staff.[21] Each summit is primarily organised by the hosting country.[3]
In January 2023, the Government of France began recruiting a small task force, led by a project manager, to support the work of the EPC. The task force will help coordinate the preparation and organisation of EPC Summits, support the institutional development of the EPC, facilitate the insertion of the EPC in the space European diplomacy (EU, Council of Europe) and contribute to mobilising various other actors (such as development banks) in support of the work of the EPC. The task force is to be based in Paris with a presence in the host city for the next summit.[22]
The invitation letter for the first summit was signed by European Council President Charles Michel.[23] For the second summit, invitation letters were jointly signed by Charles Michel and Maia Sandu, the president of the hosting country.[24]
An official website, Twitter account and Facebook account for the second summit were launched in late April 2023.[25] As the community had not launched an official website at that time, the agendas, press releases and multimedia resources for the first summit were published on the website of the European Council.[26][27]
Symbols
Interim logo used at the first summit
At the request of the government of the United Kingdom, the European Political Community does not use symbols associated with the European Union such as the European Flag or the European Anthem.[28][29][30] At the first summit in October 2022, a simple wordmark consisting of the English language name of the community in blue capital letters was displayed on printed materials, backdrops, and lecterns.[31] A new logo was adopted in the lead up to the second summit, consisting of the abbreviation "EPC" in blue on a white background.[32]
Following the first summit, it was decided that Moldova will hold the following meeting, and topics on which leaders agreed to work on include protecting "key facilities" such as pipelines, undersea cables, and satellites.[10][36]
In May 2023, Switzerland expressed an interest in hosting an EPC summit in spring 2025.[37]
The second summit hosted by Moldova coincided with an €87m contribution to non-military logistical aid from the European Union, as well as the establishment of a civilian mission in Chișinău.[48]
Reaction
Positive
German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz said that community could mediate "regular exchanges at the political level" once or twice a year to discuss issues affecting the continent.[49]Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, and Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, supported Macron's proposal in an opinion piece published by Politico on 5 October 2022. They argued that Europe needed a platform that did not overlap with existing regional organizations or displace processes of European Union membership.[50] In a command paper presented to parliament in March 2023, the UK government stated that it supports the aims of the EPC and sees it as a "notable and welcome new forum for continent-wide cooperation".[51] The Consultative Committee of the European Economic Area has welcomed the formation of the EPC and considers it to be a good arena for the discussion of talks and discussions related to maintaining peace and stability across the continent.[52]
Negative
According to the Associated Press, critics claimed the EPC is an attempt to put the brakes on the potential enlargement of the European Union. "Others fear it may become a talking shop, perhaps convening once or twice a year but devoid of any real clout or content" and that "No EU money or programs are on offer, and no formal declaration will be issued after the summit. The proof of its success is likely to be whether a second meeting ever actually takes place. "The creation of this new forum reportedly "perplexed" the Council of Europe, with a spokesperson stating "In the field of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, such a pan-European community already exists: it is the Council of Europe."[10]
