- 2026-06-19 “(16:40:54 – 16:46:03): This is not just about cheap imports. We see overcapacities that erode our own manufacturing base, and this is simply not sustainable. We know very well that we must do our homework 1st to boost our own competitiveness, but we also have to address the global imbalances. Our discussions showed clear support for continuing the path of diversification and derisking our relationship. On 1 hand, we must avoid dependencies that can be weaponized. This means that we are accelerating the derisking process, derisking not decoupling. On the other hand, we will keep protecting our market from unfair practices. Europe has already built an extensive toolbox in the recent years. Now we must use it more proactively and more strategically to defend our European interests. And indeed, as president Costa said, the commission will work on new tools such as a diversification instrument.
I'm pleased that we saw clear support for European response based on unity among the member states and dialogue with China, which remains crucial. The commission will take this forward and the topic will remain high on our common agenda.
Now turning to internal matters. Today, of course, we also discussed the next European budget. The council has now reached an agreement on the new MFF architecture. That is an important step forward. It shows that member states share the commission's ambition for a simpler and future proof budget, a budget that equips Europe to compete, strengthens its security and defense, and its capacity to act in a more challenging world, a budget that will support our farmers, our regions, and our communities across the union.
And for the 1st time, we have a negotiating box with figures, thanks to the Cypriot presidency. This is another major step forward. Of course, no 1 sees the ideal budget immediately in this box, but it is a solid basis for negotiation, just as you said, for the next presidency then to take forward.
Now we must maintain the level of ambition, and this must be matched by the means to deliver. This is also why we need a robust and stable system of new own resources and why by our next meeting, we should have a shared understanding of how we want to finance the next MFF.
Dear Nikos, last but certainly not least, this agreement in the council was a real breakthrough. And so I want to thank you and specifically also your whole team over there for the extremely hard work, the skillful steer, the overview, the delivery. This was really fantastic. So many, many thanks for that.
With the Irish presidency, with this foundation, the Irish presidency has a very good basis to start and to build on, but this is only 1 of your achievements. Your presidency came as a at a very demanding time. Cyprus has been vital as a bridge with the Middle East. It really paid off that since many, many years, you have excellent relationship to the region, friendship partnership built on trust. This really paid off. And your work has helped keep us closely engaged with the region when the dialogue mattered most.
Your presidency also delivered on Europe's most important priorities from support to Ukraine to progress on enlargement, the likes of which we haven't seen in years, I must say, from competitiveness and simplification with agreements on a number of omnibuses to a common European system of returns, and I could go on and on and on. The list is long.
I also want to congratulate you on the agreement reached on the air passenger rights. It was the 1st major overhaul of these rules in 2 decades, and they matter so much in the daily lives of European citizens. Passengers enjoy clearer compensation rules now. Airlines have greater legal certainty, and everyone benefits. So you and your team can be very, very proud of what you have achieved. Thank you very much. Effa Christo, my friend. Thanks. President Cristo Luedes, please.”
EU-China relations
- 2026-06-19 “(16:59:50 – 17:01:05): Yes. Ukraine wants peace, and Europe wants peace. The only 1 consistently choosing violence is Russia. Our entire continent is at risk, and this is why Europe must be 1 of the architects of a just and lasting peace. Ukraine is in the driver's seat. We, as European Union, stand by Ukraine. And sooner or later, Russia will have to come to the negotiation table, notably through the pressure of our sanctions. And when that moment comes, we need a united European message to president Putin.
President Costa and I will continue working closely with president Zelensky to achieve this urgent goal. President Costa represents the 27 member states. The instruments for, for example, energy, immobilized assets, sanctions, defense industry, and others are with the commission. And I can only confirm that from day 1 on, we have been excellently working together, and this will continue. Thank you. Evie?”
Russia-Ukraine conflict (10th term)
- 2026-06-19 “(16:37:45 – 16:40:53): Good afternoon. Thank you very much. We had a very productive UCO. So let me jump right in. 1st, on Ukraine. We start with good news. The tide is turning. Antonio and I congratulated President Zelensky on the opening of the 1st cluster. This is a major milestone. Now our goal is to open more clusters before the summer. And we also agreed on the rollover of the Russian sanctions and, importantly, this time for 12 months, no more for 6 months. And this too sends a very strong message. And we continue our work to finalize the 21st package of sanctions. These are heartbiting sanctions that will keep the pressure on Russia. And at the same time, we have to prepare when negotiations start.
2nd, on the Middle East, the interim agreement between The United States and Iran is a breakthrough and an important opportunity to ensure freedom of navigation toll free in the Strait Of Hormuz, to ensure that Iran never has nuclear weapons, to address concerns related to the ballistic programs and regional activities, and ultimately, to advance peace and security across the region.
This crisis has underscored an important lesson. We must not allow the global economy to be held hostage. We need to develop other routes and corridors, for example, in that region, the IMEC. And for that, we will deepen our engagement with our partners in The Gulf and beyond, and this will be a topic that will be discussed the next time we meet the Gulf countries.
Finally, what is happening in Lebanon is deeply concerning. A stable and peaceful Middle East also requires a stable and sovereign Lebanon. We support the Lebanese leadership's effort to achieve the disarmament of Hezbollah. At the same time, it is important that Israel respects both the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Lebanon.
Now to my 3rd point. We had very good discussions at G7 earlier this week. And now also last night, we had a very productive discussion on the structural overcapacities and the impact on global imbalances. And let me bring it back to Europe with some figures concerning main economic partners. Over the last 5 years, imports, for example, from China into the European Union have increased by 45%. Last year, the European Union recorded its largest ever trade deficit with China, €360,000,000,000. That is a deficit of €1,000,000,000 per day. And for the 1st time, all member states had a trade deficit.”
EU-Russia relations (from March 2022)
- 2026-06-19 “(17:11:19 – 17:12:17): Basically, the new instrument, if I want to give him 2 feature, it's country agnostic. That's very important. But it's, in general, a instrument that supports companies to derisk faster. What we see is that the derisking in the business sector has been far too slow over the years. So the risks were visible, but the reaction to the risks have not been fast enough and appropriate enough.
Now, to your question, whether this tool will be used, the best would be it will not be used because things change for the better, of course, but because the pressure is high. And if the pressure is high, the instrument, of course, will be used because there's a need for improvement. We've seen the figures. They speak for themselves, and we have to rebalance our relationship. Thank you. I will take 1 final question. Andrew.”
EU industrial funding (mechanism level: EU-pooled vs nationally-financed)
- 2026-06-19 “(17:05:34 – 17:07:27): to to enlargement and to the budget. Okay. Yes. So, this was a very successful presidency. And also in view of enlargement, this was a very successful presidency. You just heard the president describe the progress. I think what, made it so successful was, the excellent negotiations, the encouragement for the candidate countries to do the necessary reforms, but then the reward also of opening clusters or chapters or even closing chapters again. So there is a clear message out there. The finish line is in sight for some of them. And this is, of course, enormously motivating for, all the all the candidate countries, and that the merits get rewarded.
And what the budget is concerned, I'm very grateful that we made a huge step forward with the partial general agreement. That means the architecture is now agreed by all 27. That's very important because you recall, we had discussions about the modernizing of the architecture, the national and regional partnership plans, the competitiveness fund, the Global Europe Fund. It's a completely new and modern architecture, and this has now been agreed by all 27. So this is very important and a big step forward, and that gave us the possibility that the presidency presented the figures.
And indeed, I think the debate went much better than I had expected. Very concrete, very clear, the comments of the different leaders so that for us and the next presidency, there's a good food for thought on, how to try to put the puzzle together so that it fits for everybody.”
EU enlargement
- 2026-06-16 “We have more flexibility now for individual member states. So we're giving trust back to the member states. We know that it is member states themselves who can best decide how they want to weight cohesion and agriculture. That also is a step in the right direction. And that's exactly the path we need to continue going down on global Europe. Yes, we perhaps could have gone further from our point of view, but Ukraine has already been mentioned this morning. And if I look to Ukraine. I think there's still a lot to come there, including financially. It has to be mentioned. But to this date, Germany has supported Ukraine to the tune of €80 billion, half of that for military equipment and the other half for civil civilian projects, €80 billion. That is a significant amount of money, even for Germany. And overall, everything that has to do with global Europe. I think it's good if the member states are also active bilaterally looking at development aid. For instance, we've seen the withdrawal of US aid, so now it's up to Europe to provide strong support in that area. So as far as I see it, everything is moving in absolutely the right direction. And perhaps one word in closing.”
EU-Ukraine relations
- 2026-06-16 “We would begin with external security, defense security, AI competitiveness with space, European cloud. These are issues which where we find ourselves in. And as observers with respect to other world powers such as China and the US. And we can only sit by and watch what's happening because we don't have enough money five, 10 or 20 years from now, we will need to generate our own economic future. These are the issues we should have very much at heart. It's not that agricultural policy is not important. Of course it is and will remain important, but we have to learn to look to the future and to prioritize accordingly and to invest money accordingly. This budget must be an investment budget, and we say that it's. The simple fact is that spending has to lead to results. That must be our guiding principle. We attach particular importance. If I can be concise when Pyotr. When it comes to own resources, we are prepared to have a constructive discussion. But as a corporate tax is something we are against, it would be contrary to the competitiveness of our businesses, and I don't see any any legal basis or competence of the European Union in that respect. Aside from that, we are open. We remain open to dialogue. But what we don't want to see is unfair contribution, uh, grids and, uh, scales. That's something we have to say clearly. So, please, no new debt. A clear striking, a right balance between the different, uh, spending items and prioritize in the right way. These are the key issues from our standpoint at this point in time. Thank you.”
Defence spending
- 2026-06-16 “Rule of law is indeed a point that in the future, particularly when it comes to disbursement of funds, we do need to pay close attention to because we cannot justify that at home, with our taxpayers, with our electorate. Money is being paid to countries and programs where the rule of law, in terms of anti-corruption measures, for instance, is not guaranteed. We cannot do that, which is why it was important that we did pull the brakes in the case of Hungary in the past. And it is equally important that now that Hungary is having a bit of a European spring moment, the money can be unblocked and can be used for that, that it was originally intended to be used for, which is to support the citizens, to support the municipalities, to support local communities. That is where the money is needed. That's where it has to have an effect, particularly in cohesion, where the money is so desperately needed. So some summing up. Thank you very much for all your excellent work and we're on the right track. We need to continue moving in this direction. And I think that this is a very successful compromise, and that is why we can support all three regulations.”
Rule of law in Hungary
- 2026-06-16 “And then I will concentrate also on the box. Now it's switched on. I will concentrate now on the first on the first. But I will also switch in my mother tongue in German language. To start with, I would like to thank the Cyprus presidency in particular for presenting this proposal. Pyotr, it's not a question now of criticising or not criticising anyone. It's a question of what we have on the table in front of us, which we need to discuss, and for us for the Federal Republic of Germany. That is not acceptable. I have to be clear about that. Uh, Xavier has already touched on one point, which is the issue of timing. And I have the impression that some feel that we we have time until the 30th of December 2027, because the whole new MFF would enter into force as of the following 1st of January. Well, the simple fact is, if, uh, if we look at the situation in France, Bardella gave an interview to Politico magazine where he said clearly that he wants to have France's contributions to the European Union. So we see what these right wing populists want to achieve. They want to destroy the European Union. But one thing is clear we don't know who is going to be the next French president president. But it is clear that it will this will play a big role in the election campaign, and we will feel that. And that means that we are under time pressure. I fully agree with Mr. Costa when he says that we need to find a compromise by the end of this year. Whatever form that takes, we have to find a compromise. Perhaps we could wait until we can see what's going to happen in 2026, but we don't have any clear vision of what's going to happen in 2027.”
EU political integration
- 2026-06-16 “Well. Coming back to a positive point, we support the fact that we have this momentum for modernisation. And in the different sectors we have a clear modernisation approach which has been agreed. But the current proposals and quantitative proposals are not acceptable. We are calling for horizontal reduction and this has to be expressed in the figures. National budgets are under huge pressure and where. That is not the. If that is not the case, please raise your hands. In any case, in Germany it is very much the case and that is why we can't go along with this. And we have to say that very clearly. If we have to tighten our belts at national level, we expect the same to at EU level. That is not something that Piotr would necessarily agree with, but I can see the background. But if we hear the European Commission saying that we want to see an extra 2500 officials, that's completely unrealistic, and that's something I simply couldn't vote for. But another important point we can't finance this through debt. We are reducing the debt for future generations in the EU. That's essential. That has been decided in the own resources decision. But it would be absurd if we were simply to replace old debt by new debt. What would we gain by that? So clearly nothing. So at the end of the day, we have to prioritise. We have to prioritise the key issues. And I must say, if we were to reinvent the European Union. We. If we had a reset button here that we could press, we would not begin with agriculture policy.”
Size of EU budget
- 2026-06-16 “Marielena. Thank you very much. And especially thank you to you, to your team and also to Commissioner Piotr Serafin and also to your team, because it's like squaring the circle, the quadrature of this crisis. Then squaring the circle, if you will, because at the end of the day, we have a lot of wishes that haven't been fulfilled as Germany. However, in the interest of the overall global approach. We think that all three regulations are a good compromise. It's important that we not only achieve a modernization modernization of the MFF. That's often an overused term, but we also need to aim for simplification. That's something that Commissioner Serafin pointed to earlier this morning. Simplification. This is something that we want to achieve in many areas. When we talk about reducing bureaucracy, when we look at the omnibuses that are currently being negotiated. All of that serves the purpose of simplification, making the EU easier to understand, simplifying the structures, because at the end of the day, that will increase the EU's acceptance with our citizens. And over time. Pyotr, of course, there's been a lot of complexities and transparencies that have emerged. And what we're trying to do is go back to a more transparent and more acceptable European Union. That really is a big achievement, that 14 different programs and regulations could be brought together under the European competitors in the fund. That is a step in the absolutely right direction that we achieved looking at the NRP.”
EU industrial funding (mechanism level: EU-pooled vs nationally-financed)
- “Thank you very much. And I'm sorry for taking the floor too quickly. The German government has taken note of the agreement on green Denmark with great interest. I'm sure it was a great challenge to bring together all the various stakeholders. Leading industry, agriculture, environmental organizations. And it's remarkable that the support was found in Danish society. So congratulations on that. We're looking forward to the next steps, particularly as concerns the CO2 tax.”
Extension of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme
- “Thank you very much indeed. The federal Government believes that the measures in the EU chemical strategy are appropriate, and we need to implement them. We support the presidency's effort to rapidly tackle the pending issues in the sustainable Chemicals strategy. It's also very important to make sure that the European chemicals industry remains competitive. And then that's taken account of with a view to the implementation of the Green Deal and also the chemical strategy. We still believe that a targeted review of the reach regulation is necessary. It is important to make sure that we have a high level protection of human health and environment as well. It's important to take a risk based approach to the regulatory procedure in reach, and that approach should be retained. Undifferentiated blanket bans of total of whole groups of chemicals is something which we can't support. Only when we have a complete registration data will we be able to assess risks and dangers and ensure the safe use of substances. A solid and reliable data basis is crucial for any further measures in order to achieve the aims of the Reach regulation. But we do need to make sure that we avoid collecting the same data twice. The Reach authorisation procedure has to be improved in all of its different steps for all players and it needs to be easier to implement. It's also important to make sure that we conclude on the FAS limitation procedure as quickly as possible. Furthermore, we also welcome the Commission putting forward a proposal as quickly as possible for a basic regulation for Echa. This should make sure that Echa is able to continue to fulfil its important tasks in terms of chemical safety, and we need to make sure that funds are used efficiently and that they have clear tasks regarding the future implementation of the chemical strategy. Having some information about how we, the future timetable and the concrete work to be carried out by the Commission would be very helpful, and we would really welcome the new Commission giving us a report on that in the Environment Council. Thanks very much.”
Chemicals regulation
- “Thank you very much. Allow me to express my gratitude to the Spanish Council [00:11:30] Presidency for the conclusions on this very important topic, the role of research and innovation for society. There are two points I would just wish to stress. The first of these is science policy, and we're talking about evidence based knowledge. And this must be consistently more consistently involved in political decision making processes. This is something which made us strong in Europe in the past [00:12:00] and should continue to do so in the future. And this should enhance trust and confidence in science as well. So that's a very, very important point which figures in this set of recommendations. Second point from these conclusions that I would like to highlight is the view. Of the European innovation ecosystem. Innovative power is key to competitiveness in Europe. Innovation and the transfer of science into [00:12:30] practice is not something which should stop at borders. Innovation of regions must bring the best brains together across borders. Now, there are quite a number of national initiatives to enhance innovative power, which are to be found in the federal Government's future strategy for Research and Innovation. In addition to this, on the 15th of November, we agreed on a national action plan for the European Research Area. So the idea is to pool the German commitment for [00:13:00] the idea of an area of free exchange of knowledge and among researchers in Europe, whereby we would focus on the topic of innovation. So here we want to take an important cornerstone for an all encompassing national innovation strategies. And I'd like to thank the Council presidency for having pushed this issue so consistently. Together, we can increase Europe's innovative power. Thank you.”
EU-level coordination of research agendas
- “For all of this, we need to all focus on common priorities and implemented this together. We need clear rules for the policy windows governance, a closer coordination with member states, and research and innovation experts need to be involved in the governance system. Other central subjects are how to deal with dual use projects. So this is an opportunity for science and progress. This can boost our resilience. But of course this is a challenge from a security point of view. Also associations. And this is a major part of the current success of the research programme. Third point supporting cutting edge technology under pillar three of Fp10 and supporting a risky innovation, high risk innovation. I think that, um, many other countries have, um, focused on this and this needs to link in with national innovation ecosystems and with the high tech agenda. Um, in Germany, we've already moved forward on this nationally. So ultimately, with Fp10, we can boost our competitiveness overall. Thank you very much.”
EU research funding
- “Thank you very much to the Polish presidency for launching this debate. Europe is facing major challenges due to geopolitical changes, defence issues, competitiveness, but also in terms of what's happening at home. We can see populism, extremism and nationalism on the rise. And I think Creative Europe has an important role to play here. Like almost no other program, it creates ties and brings people together. The Creative Europe programme is an idea of a peaceful continent at its heart, and so I'm very pleased that the new federal government has explicitly stated that they need a strong Creative Europe programme in the future as well, to also be able to promote a joint cultural identity. Now, at the same time, it's important that we take into account the core of what Creative Europe is to preserve that and to make sure we have more added value. Where else can we see the European project and the European diversity that we have in such a cross-border way? Culture, media create ties and foster a sense of belonging. They are very important for a democratic and prosperous society and one that's resilient as well. Now, culture can only play its full role if its value is recognised, and it's not just used as a means to an end. Culture and media need free spaces in order that they can really live up to their full potential now. So for all these reasons, we need to make sure that the recognizability and identity of Creative Europe is maintained. I think it's equally important to have culture and media in one program, because of course, there are many synergies between the two areas. And also, we can reach a critical mass, which we wouldn't be able to if we had two separate programs.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you very much. I'd like to thank Croatia and the presidency for their commitment and their work on this file. I'd like to point out, though, that various practical questions have been raised from [00:17:30] the sector, from producer associations, and from the scientific as well as consumer groups. Therefore, I would stress that we need to take the necessary time to discuss these important points so that the various stakeholders and their comments can be taken into account. So quality before speed as Austria. Thank you.”
New Genomic Techniques
- “Thank [00:15:30] you very much. We would like to thank Finland, uh, and the other countries for their declaration and favour of the bioeconomy. The basic approach is very encouraging. We too would like to see bioeconomy playing a stronger role in the new work policy. The use of sustainably produced biomass has many advantages as compared to the use of fossil fuels. At the same time, the various aspects in terms of sustainability have to be weighed [00:16:00] up carefully. In Germany's view, a balanced, uh approach to biomass production and use are essential. Sustainably produced biomass is only available to a limited extent, and therefore the economic aspects, the economic and environmental aspects, the contribution to climate protection all have to be borne in mind. Furthermore, the cascading effect is of importance. Biomass should [00:16:30] be used uh in a the appropriate way. It should come at the end of the cascade use process, and this includes measures to ensure that this can be done as part of a circular approach, and taking account of the availability of biomass resources and reducing the pressure. Thank you.”
Biofuels (RED II)
- “Thank you very much. I'd like to thank everyone for the information provided. And of course, a net zero emissions by 2050 is our common goal, and we must apply measures [00:05:30] to the air traffic sector as a whole. And here we have to determine which flights have to be taken into account when it comes to the plans for EU emissions trading. I think this would be more productive than focusing exclusively on private jet travel. Thank you.”
Decarbonisation of aviation sector
- “These could be useful tools. Both of them could provide useful incentives for climate, environmental and nature protection, as well as more income for agriculture. These need to be really practical solutions that clearly demonstrate the value added of environmental and climate measures. And the upcoming planned sustainability benchmarking could be a further contribution to establishing a level playing field and promoting green action as a means for assessing, in order to make our agricultural food sector fit for the future. Interdisciplinary research is particularly important. It can provide us with innovative solutions and will foster debate between policy and practitioners. Many member states, alongside the Cap have programs that specifically support innovation and new technologies in the field of agriculture. And this needs to be supported through better networking and improved transfer of best practice. In order to do this, specifically tailored digital infrastructure in rural areas is needed to ensure interoperability and standardization of digital systems would also be needed. We could take up ideas from universities and research institutions in the field of agriculture and food, in order to speed up the application of new technologies. What's fundamental here is that only the matters that are addressed at EU level. Should be removed there. So for example removing red tape. Thank you.”
Digital and precision farming
- “President, Commissioner. Dear colleagues. As a major transit country, Germany has a major interest in an effective prosecution of offenders, and we are very much in favor of this. A lot of Germany's concerns have been taken into account in the general approach on driving disqualifications. We're grateful to the presidency for this. We're grateful that points based, uh systems are excluded. There are two heterogeneous and. And then there's the question of not acknowledging the, uh, driving license that during the particular period concerned. And we do see that there is a burden coming the way of the administrations. But we do see the advantages and non-resident offenders need to expect a disqualification across the union if they commit serious offences, such as serious speeding or driving under the influence. This will make Europe's roads not just safer, but it is a considerable contribution towards Vision Zero. Thank you very much.”
Road transport environmental policy
- “Thank you very much. I'd like to mention that ETS one is a market based core instrument of Europe's climate policy. And as previous speakers have already said, we have sent a joint paper recently. We need a reliable regulatory framework which ensures that investments in transformation are supported and that energy intensive industries can be more competitive. In order to be taking the lead, we need those industries that have already invested in transformation to not be penalized by weakening the ETS system, the ETS review. That is up and coming, needs to be used in order to ensure that the system can be fit for the future and focus on the decarbonisation of industry, focusing our competitiveness and strengthening the European industrial base. What's important is that we have long term viable solutions to avoid carbon leakage, particularly also for the non cbam sectors. In the short term, we need an adaptation of the legal basis for several benchmarks for heat and fuel. We need to ensure that they better reflect the different options deployed by industries. And when it comes to the reform, we believe we need to focus on reducing the linear reduction factor from 2036 and bring it in line with the 2040 aim, ensuring that the cap on free allocations is gradually reduced, and that flexibility and market basis of the system is strengthened. In order to ensure the predictability and planning security of the system.”
Extension of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme
- “Thank you very much. Let me also emphasize that the industrial bioeconomy is important for the green transition and also for maintaining, uh, Competitiveness is essential in 2023. Investments on research and development in this area were €23 billion, which was, uh, a large proportion of R&D. And every job in the bioeconomy creates 2.9 further indirect jobs. And those are figures, I think, which prove that we should work on a new bioeconomy strategy. So we're very happy that the commission has gone down that road. We need to simplify the legal framework, have a quicker, um, legal processes, uh, and approval processes for bioeconomy products. Uh, and uh, we also need relevant standards which need to be maintained as well. Thank you.”
EU support for bioeconomic applications
- “Thank you very much. The audiovisual sector is very important, particularly when it comes to putting forward our historic and cultural diversity. We think that working together at the European and international level, in order to support the sector is something that we need to do, and it's been very successful. I mean, the very many nominated European films we have just go to show how successful we've been. If you take a look at European production in cinemas, on platforms and providers, it shows that there's definitely still room for improvement. In this day and age where European is, you know, looking at a strategic autonomy. We would agree with France that we need to have more in-depth discussions as to how we can support diverse forms of European production and content in a way that we can support our democracies, of course, as well. Now, with this European approach, we need to have a democratic, open digital space in Europe which will allow for these diverse, uh, content to be produced. And I'd like to give the floor now to my colleague. Thank you very much. We are presenting the lender when it comes to media, and we think we need this consistent framework to continue to be developed. And of course, the member states are responsible for this too. But when it comes to the tech giants, we need the EU to step up and take action too. So we really welcome the fact that France has pointed to the very important EU agenda for the media sector, particularly when it comes also to the evaluation of the Avms directive. Media policy is always democracy as well, so we would stand for democratic communication as much as possible and to have equal opportunities for all in this sector. Thank you.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you very much. Of course, all of these files are very important for Germany, but I would like to focus on 1 today, firstly, because we don't have a lot of time here, and it's also very time sensitive. The European Council gave us a very clear mandate by the end of June. The edeclaration has to be agreed with parliament, and Germany fully stands behind that objective.
And we thank the presidency for the proposal to continue working on it, and we will contribute constructively. But all involved now need to show willingness to compromise in order to reach a solution that can have majority support, and I can only wish the presidency all the best of luck in upcoming dialogues.”
EU political integration
- “Yes, thank you very much indeed. First of all, I would also like to thank the presidency for putting this important topic on the Council agenda. The importance of vaccination as a tool when it comes to preventing animal diseases has been made clear again, for example, at the vaccination Congress, with experts on the subject. On top of what we have heard from the Italian minister, I would like to just make a couple of points as well. When it comes to ASF, the current restriction period in the case of a single outbreak of ASF in a previously disease free area leads, in our view, to you to unjustified limitations. Holdings in restricted zones are faced with harsh measures in a situation which is not of their making. Pig holdings don't just face extra costs for the extra measures, but they also don't get market prices for their healthy pigs. Generally, the animals are heavier and that means that they are sold below value. All the measures involve loss of income for producers, so in our view we urgently need proportionate measures. So I call on you to introduce risk appropriate restriction periods. Now turning to bluetongue I would like to highlight that preventive vaccinations with specific vaccines are an important tool when it comes to control of the disease. This is the only way of combating this disease effectively. So we would like to plead in favour of making sure that the process for regular authorised vaccinations should be speeded up. Thank you.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “Thank you very much indeed to Sweden for the information. Note and thank you to the chair for organizing the debate on this point. Germany expressly supports the request that the new Commission should include legislative proposals for high standards of animal protection in their work programme for 2025. This is in line with the recommendations of the Strategic Dialogue and also the expressed wishes of EU citizens. It will also mean that farmers can actually plan properly. We need higher animal protection standards for animal husbandry and that includes the labelling of milk and meat according to farming techniques and also a ban on fur farming. We also need higher levels of animal protection for slaughter, as well as a ban on the slaughter of male chicks. So I would like to call on the Commission to Ensure the Future of Animal Husbandry in the EU by putting forward legislative proposals. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers
- “Thank you very much. First of all, Cheslav, I would like to wish you and the Polish presidency every success in the tasks ahead. And we welcome the new members from Ireland and Lithuania. Thank you very much as well, for your participation in the Green Week and the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture. I think together we contributed to it being a success. Unfortunately, today I have bad news to share with you. Unfortunately, in Brandenburg on the 10th of January 2025, an outbreak of foot and mouth disease was established. This is the first FMD case in Germany since 1988. We don't know exactly how the pathogen was introduced. What we do know, however, is what serotype it is. And the good news is that despite intensive measures that have been taken in response to this occurrence, no further cases have been established. We have carried out all the necessary response measures, the safe disposal of all affected animals and also all animals, and within all cloven hoofed animals, within a one kilometre radius of the affected farm, including the contact farm involved. And also we've taken measures with regard to zoos, but unfortunately, of course, the markets are closed to exports in the area of the European Union. We have the principle of regionalised regulation. That means movements of animals outside the restricted zone are still possible, and I'm extremely grateful, of course, for this measure. The recognition of EU regionalisation and also the regulations the Woaa are of central importance in dealing with this. Only if we work together in a spirit of solidarity, can we address current and future crises in the internal market. I therefore very much hope that we will work closely together and avoid any unilateral measures in this case. Thank you very much.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “Thank you chair. We stand in solidarity with our Czech and Slovak colleagues emphasising the importance of achieving climate neutrality by 2050. This ambitious goal will have far reaching effects or regions that rely on coal pet and oil shell, as well as those dependent on liquid fossil fuels like heavy fuel, oil and diesel. It is crucial to ensure ongoing funding for the transition towards a carbon neutral economy beyond 2027. This is because the process of transitioning is a long-term in the war and cannot be confirmed to a single programming period. It is crucial to recognise the significance of this transition as it encompasses more than just the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy. It also entails the necessary investments for electrification, including the substantial capital needed to upgrade and digitalize our networks. Thank you very much.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Okay. Chair. And then, um, thank you for giving me the floor here. And thank you for the clear message. Um, let me say one sentence at least to the current geopolitical situation and escalation in Middle East. Um, I wished we could have time, maybe in the beginning to at least have a roundtable on this, but we decided not to do this. So first, we don't see a physical security. Um, supply constraint, but of course the price spikes and that causes, of course, discussions on, uh, the energy policy, um, we focus on and possible changes. Um, that's not the day to discuss this here, but just to point this out, um, first of all, the, um, thanks to the periodic presidency for the intensive work on the EU package and as then asked to say what we like, I'm glad to comply with your request. So what do we like? First of all, to plan cross-border infrastructure. It's cost efficient and it is necessary. I also think that you consider to take in the hydrogen Interconnectors and hydrogen a backbone. I also like a better coordinated scenarios. So in addition to the central scenario and maybe more additional scenarios on the basis of the member states. Sometimes it's nitty gritty and you have to coordinate also with the regional need, cost sharing is of utmost importance. As Eva said, it is a very sensitive issue and I welcome that we discuss of financing cross-border infrastructure and the congestion revenues which drives from this.”
EU energy infrastructure integration
- “Thank you to the Belgium presidency for the intense, intensive work done on this directive and for the understanding that you've shown us so far. I'm doing everything [00:24:00] to ensure that Germany's position will be finalized under the Belgian presidency, and discussions are taking place on a possible new position on the draft directive. The new German position is a precondition for overcoming the misgivings that we have about the directive. We still have our reservations. We are looking at all the financial [00:24:30] implications, and the federal states have to be involved in these discussions. Uh, the, uh, examinations of the texts are taking place. Given the current situation in Germany, which I would like to say the following on, the Constitution already states that equality is an important principle. It's there is a ban, uh, against a discrimination. And, uh, there is a. [00:25:00] There is an equality law with the objective of overcoming disadvantage because of race or ethnic origin, uh, gender or, uh, disability, sexual identity, and so on. Uh, the anti-discrimination body was set up. It's called ads. And, uh, it's, uh, management is independent and their, uh, main [00:25:30] role is support and advice and, uh. And their role goes beyond what the current directive states. And since this, uh, uh, the, their role has developed even further. And, uh, a broad majority of our population continues to, uh, say that anti-discrimination is important. And I hope we'll be able to make a positive contribution [00:26:00] soon very much.”
EU policy on integration and ethnic, racial and religious discrimination
- “Yeah, thank you. Good morning to everybody in the room. I would like to begin by thanking the Belgian presidency for putting this point on today's agenda. And also as a speaking point, speakers lost a microphone, I'm afraid. Theresa, I would like to thank you for your speech. I can wholeheartedly support it. I think that we have a dual responsibility to decide we are responsible for the European procedures. We are the first council convened after the European elections where it has become clear that the confidence in Europe has been affected. And as the Council of Ministers as part of these European procedures, our decisions, our procedures must be part of the restoration of trust. We must regain it where it has weakened. And as there pointed out, we have a clear decision that has been taken in the council on the one hand. And secondly, there've been long and intensive negotiations in order to allow the various interests to be included in this legislation.
We have a very careful balance, which takes on board the interests of agriculture. Germany has made a statement to the minutes on this subject and referred to this. And so we have to guarantee trust that is a responsibility, and we must ensure we have agreement on this legislation. Germany will vote in favour. And the second point of responsibility related to this decision is the creation of protection for our natural environment. No government on this planet, no party in this planet can avoid trying to preserve our environment. There are threats to our environment in many places, in many parts of Europe, in any city in Europe. Over last months and years, we have had various damages, economic losses, people have lost their lives, and we do have the responsibility to stabilise nature, to restore ecosystems. And because of this second reason, I will plead in favour of approving this piece of legislation today. Thank you.”
Nature protection and restoration in the EU
- “Thank you very much. And I would also I don't want to use too much time, but I would nevertheless like to say on behalf of Germany that we think this, that biotech is a very central key technology with a great deal of significance for the EU and for Germany. And if we want to have a successful EU biotech sector, it's very important that we take horizontal, uh, cross-sectoral measures in the biotech to act. And so we welcome this information point and the Non-paper, and we would like to see regulation simplified, which would lead to a lot less red tape, quicker Approval processes are key here, and we need a dynamic science based coordinated regulation system regulatory system. Thank you.”
New Genomic Techniques
- “Thank you very much indeed. We would also like to thank Spain for having introduced this very important issue. As we know, the previous presidency, Spain and the current Belgian presidency have done their best to try to reach an agreement during the current period [00:11:30] of office of the EP. However, from our point of view, a number of very important questions remain open under discussions within the Federal government. They have confirmed that there are different, uh, ways of thinking about some of the content of the proposed text. Thank you.”
EU Supervision of the Rule of Law
- “Thank you. I endorse my Spanish colleague's remarks. For the next few years, we are not really facing a normal culture cycle, and so we need to bear in mind we're in a war situation. We're at war with Russia, and this war has cultural knock on effects. Everything that we can do in cultural policy has to be seen in a broader context.
What Russia is aiming at is not just attacking Ukraine. No. Russia is also attacking European values. So in a global context, what we see is that totalitarianism is encroaching in many more countries. And the European idea, the values of the enlightenment are under pressure internationally.
So this war, this war which is being waged has more than just a military aspect to it. It's also a totalitarianism versus liberty struggle. It has a cultural dimension. And, accordingly, we need to take our positions. Everything that we plan should be seen in this global context. So the visibility of European values is crucial. The creativity of our cultural economy is not just an economic initiative. This is part of the competition of values, the struggle for freedom. We must be clear about this.
Europe was born of the enlightenment. And if we base ourselves upon the enlightenment, then we have to be enlightened in our policy. This basis is rather different from what it was in previous decades perhaps. We had a laissez faire attitude perhaps. And things that we were not so well aware of need now to come to the fore. So cultural politics need to be pursued actively. Disinformation must be tackled head on because the challenge of facing totalitarianism requires concentration in the economy. We are going head on against the global trends towards totalitarian mindsets. This is what we in the EU should be doing in cultural political terms. This being so, and when I look to the year 2029, then we'll be marking the fortieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, 40 years of the liberation of Europe. Let's hang upon that date and attach to it the idea of liberty as the central node. So next year, we're going to be marking the Beethoven anniversary, and Beethoven is a symbol of the European musical tradition and the genius of Europe. So that needs to be stressed. So I remember that Robert Schumann said that Europe could be built starting with culture, but in the following steps, this is going to be truer than ever what Schumann said. So I look towards the presidency making the most of this theme, and I am certain that in years to come, when we know what cultural politics are in a greater context, then we can look at towards these initiatives. Thank you.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you very much, president. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to have this very important debate today. About a year ago, we did touch on this topic in the council before, and [00:20:30] at that time I did talk about copyright and how important that is, because without the work that creatives do, I would not be possible when it comes to training AI. We need to make sure that the millions of works that are affected by this are properly copyrighted, because otherwise the people who actually produce them would not be paid, uh, or recognized for their work. And that would be simply unacceptable. Now, with the AI act, we have made [00:21:00] an important first step when it comes to transparency. Transparency obligations are an. Example of how we can promote innovation, but also protect the people who create this work. I think that we need to be the lobbyists, the proponents, for the creatives, for their creations, because without them, I simply wouldn't be possible in the first place. [00:21:30] We can do this in a responsible way. Use AI in a responsible way. Yes, it is a challenge for us, but there are also opportunities, and I'd like to touch on those possibilities when it comes to improving data collection and management. When it comes to the collections of theaters, museums, etc. trying to reach out to new target audiences. There are opportunities when it comes to AI when it comes to [00:22:00] sustainable transformation, and also in times of crisis in terms of energy consumption, for example, there's potential there, and we're also developing an AI based app when it comes to the illegally transported cultural goods and identifying those.
[00:22:18] So there are opportunities, that's for sure. But there are risks as well when it comes to the financial aspect, the loss of creation, the sovereignty of data, the [00:22:30] reliability, transparency of the content, the ownership of the content as well. These are all the central issues that we're dealing with. So how can we make sure that artists and creatives retain ownership of their creations? How can we make sure that they're adequately financed even where there is no copyright protection? How do we protect the rights of people? How do we deal with data [00:23:00] and collections when we're talking about decades or centuries of collections? These are all issues that we need to focus on, but at the fundamental level, we need to promote democracy, rule of law and freedom. Ai, fake news and disinformation campaigns must be combated because they're already creating a lot of problems. Vladimir Carmena, a friend and author, talked about the fact that disinformation campaigns today [00:23:30] are dangerous weapons and can be used against our democracies, so I really hope that we will be able to tackle this problem in the next, uh, council work program on cultural priorities, and I hope we'll continue our discussion there. Thank you.”
Artificial Intelligence
- “Thank you very much Chairman, and my thanks again to Sir Christopher for the very interesting presentation, and I'd also like to thank the Cyprus Presidency for raising this very important topic today.
Now we can get secure jobs with proper conditions and achieving real productivity. Now we've got a structural change to a computerized society, but that also leads to an imbalance on the labor market. In some sectors and some regions, there are not enough skilled people, and in others there's not enough jobs. So you've got regional imbalances across the labor market, and that's one reason why matching is so important.
Now AI is getting more and more important at the workplace, and it's fundamentally changing what work is. It can lead to huge opportunities, competitiveness, and efficiencies. On the other hand, however, it raises a number of new questions regarding its impact on the workforce.
The AI regulation laid a good foundation for a human-based approach of AI, of implementing AI at work. In addition, it has a clause open for the employment side of things, which makes it possible for the EU and member states to respond to individual challenges raised by AI at the workplace.
Particularly dynamic are the changes of AI in the workplace, for example recruiting, personnel management, and performance management.
Now if we want to make the best use of opportunities and avoid risks, we've got to keep a constant eye on how these things are moving and have an analysis-based response so that we can see where adjustment is required.
Now when it comes to the AI Action Summit in Paris, we had a new network of AI observatories, which means we can look at cross-border issues, for example France and Italy sharing those knowledge on the impact of AI on the world of work, and we would like to deepen that cooperation in future.
Now for the workforce, it's increasingly important to be able to work with AI, and we need to have more skills and more participants. It's very important to get AI skills invested in them.
The European Semester means we have national-based recommendations and multilateral observations, so we can have satisfactory impulses, and in addition organizations for mutual learning and best practice exchanges. This could also be a very promising approach to job matching. We can see that the European network of public sector employment services being very important. Thank you.”
Artificial Intelligence
- “Chair. Commissioner Kristof, thank you very much for having organized the meeting on the 7th of January. Member States need more room for manoeuvre after the post 2027 cap, with clear and simple guidelines to find appropriate solutions. Further fundamental simplifications are necessary for both farmers and administrations. Germany will play a proactive role to avoid unnecessary bureaucratic efforts at an early stage, without lowering the relevant standards, and to systematically work towards dismantling dismantling unnecessary red tape in all EU files. These simplifications will also strengthen the competitiveness of EU agriculture. The cap is an essential part of the national and regional partnership plans, and these specific schemes for income support in the Cap for which a specific minimum budget is planned, could also be transferred to the Cap regulation. Thank you.”
Agriculture (green)
- “Yes. Thank you very much, dear Nadja. We'd also like to thank the Council presidency for the negotiations you've conducted on the single currency package. There's still a lot of work to be done, but we have made some important progress. Germany. Will continue to contribute [00:13:00] constructively to this process. And as others have said, a digital euro can only complement cash, not replace it. And general availability of cash. This is something we need to set great store by. So we welcome the important commission a proposal. So the status of cash and strengthening that saying that it's a legal tender. We support that. It's [00:13:30] become clear from discussions and negotiations how complex this project is. So I think that we have to be realistic. We still have a lot of negotiations ahead of us. So for the overall legislative framework to clarify that, and there are three things that are particularly important for us. First of all, we need to strike the balance between the parties concerned, the stakeholders. And I'm not just talking about the EU institutions, but [00:14:00] I'm talking about the relationship between the public and private sector. Secondly, on issues of, um, how to organize the technical details, we need to intensify those discussions.
And thirdly, I think that everyone participating in this project and, uh, please focus on the innovation potential attached to a digital euro. So payments in the digitalized industry, for example. So [00:14:30] the Euro group back in January, um, already highlighted the possible introduction of a digital euro. And, uh. This all requires political decisions to be taken. The European co-legislators need to base themselves on a broad societal debate to avoid a disinformation campaigns. And to make this project [00:15:00] a success on the cash proposal. We've made a lot of progress thanks to the presidency, and we would like to congratulate the president specifically for all the progress that's been made based on the current state of play and negotiations. There are just a few core aspects that that need to be thought through in a bit more depth. So it's important for us to find a solutions which are accepted by society and something that's workable in practice. [00:15:30] That's very important. That's the only way of making sure that a digital euro, the digital euro, complements our cash. And this needs to be coordinated. The two sides need to be well coordinated for this to be successful. Thank you.”
Digital euro
- “We're very grateful to Hungary for its introduction. And like Hungary, we've also been struggling with foot and mouth disease recently. Goes to show how important a common approach is. Therefore, fundamentally, we support the Hungarian idea to expand the availability of vaccines. The same applies to enabling the use of these vaccines at EU level for other relevant animal diseases. In doing so, it's important to ensure that products are vaccinated. Animals can then be brought to market. Germany would very much welcome the idea of the European Commission submitting a proposal to member states on this matter in a timely fashion. We'd also welcome the Commission's strong commitment in relevant international fora to ensure that food from vaccinated animals is accepted by operators on the market, because that is a prerequisite for extending vaccination to animal diseases where vaccination has not yet been carried out or is no longer permitted. We also need to ensure that the use of vaccination does not jeopardise the successes we've already achieved in controlling animal diseases. Thank you.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “Thank you. The Germans. Germany's government supports the high level of ambition in this proposal. We need to strike the right balance between ambitious goals in this regulation [00:18:30] and ensuring that it can be implemented in practice. We will require extensive education measures and land use change in order to achieve our goals and the use of GAP funding for optional measures should be maintained. Acceptance of these proposals is important and we need to have suitable indicators for measuring the [00:19:00] restoration measures. We need to bear in mind that agriculture may not be able to achieve all of these goals when it comes to the butterfly indicator, for example. We would need to amend national species lists for the agriculture indicators. It's important that all open arable [00:19:30] land is included, not just arable land according to cap and structures. Outside of this definition of arable land can contribute to biodiversity. Germany supports the restoration of forest ecosystems, and we know that these can make a vital contribution to climate and biodiversity protection, as well as ensuring that we maintain a healthy level of renewable wood. [00:20:00] Having forest indicators do require further discussions, however, and they should focus on national forest inventories. We need to, of course, reflect national specificities in these proposals. Germany supports the Presidency's suggestion to split indicators into two categories. First, those indicators which apply to all member states equally, and secondly, [00:20:30] those indicators that Member States can focus on in order to reflect their national situations. And the total number of indicators should be limited. Reporting and monitoring obligations should not be beyond five years. Thank you.”
Nature protection and restoration in the EU
- “Deutschland said Germany is going to make efforts for Ukrainian economic stability. The challenge here is that Ukraine needs to be able to continue exporting its agricultural production. That will not only bolster Ukraine economically, but it will be an active contribution to preventing global and regional supply crises. We are very delighted that the EU has reached agreement in principle with Ukraine. It's one of the key trade partners for Ukraine recently, and we also welcome that Ukraine has undertaken to speed up the alignment with the ag communautaire in the German view. This has created the conditions for economic relations between the EU and Ukraine. However, at the same time, it is regrettable that we were not able to reach this agreement in principle at the same time as the expiry of the ATM. We would love more details.”
Agricultural trade: Ukraine imports
- “Chair, commissioner colleagues. The automotive industry for Germany and for European industry is extremely important. Important we support the idea of climate neutral mobility with the creation of added value in Europe. Now electromobility and achieving the fleet goals is something we support. The high penalties make it difficult for industries and their investments. So we would be very grateful for the if the Commission could carry out a review, seeing how much flexibility there can be with regard to penalties without jeopardizing the goals set for 2035. And we welcome the EU Industrial Active Action Plan for the for the automotive sector, and we'll very much cooperate with that.”
2035 ICE phase-out: strict zero-emission target vs. flexibility for carmakers
- “The agricultural sector is. Very much affected by both the pandemic and the Russian aggression against Ukraine. This affects not only consumers and producers in Europe. These are effects which are felt globally. Increasing energy prices and the high inflation rate have also impacted the competitiveness of the holdings here in Europe. We would like to thank the Commission for the measures already taken to boost EU solidarity. However, at the same time, we would like to stress that the objective of ensuring a sustainable food system has to be maintained at all costs. Thank you.”
Agriculture (green)
- “Thank you. Here, I would like to say that on climate, uh, neutrality, we support the objective of 2050. We need to see how we're going to achieve [00:04:30] that. But on the way towards that, we need to an objective for 2040. We need ambitious legislative objectives and we have those in Germany. All sectors need to make a contribution to these objectives and that includes agriculture and forestry. And I'm convinced that we are in a position to achieve that. I [00:05:00] believe that we, as representatives, need to produce the necessary incentives so that our agricultural holdings can still make money, even respecting the climate objectives. We need smart solutions for that that are practicable and good for climate and also realistic for farmers. A solution which is sustainable [00:05:30] and can be supported by all needs to strike a balance. So we are in favour of a resilient, crisis, resilient forestry and agriculture. At the same time, competitiveness of this sector needs to be maintained and we should not forget that new burdens lead need to lead to a social compensation.”
Agriculture (green)
- “Thank you very much. Let me also emphasize that the industrial bioeconomy is important for the green transition and also for maintaining, uh, Competitiveness is essential in 2023. Investments on research and development in this area were €23 billion, which was, uh, a large proportion of R&D. And every job in the bioeconomy creates 2.9 further indirect jobs. And those are figures, I think, which prove that we should work on a new bioeconomy strategy. So we're very happy that the commission has gone down that road. We need to simplify the legal framework, have a quicker, um, legal processes, uh, and approval processes for bioeconomy products. Uh, and uh, we also need relevant standards which need to be maintained as well. Thank you.”
EU support for bioeconomic applications
- “Thank you very much indeed, chair. I'm very happy to be taking the floor after my esteemed French colleague. My thanks also go to the commission for having presented us with this very comprehensive automotive package, and we'd like to thank you also for revising the targets. And this has to be seen in complementarity to heavy goods vehicles. We have to put special efforts into promoting decarbonisation, and we should do everything in our power to ensure that we can make a Success of this. And this is a point which I believe the Commission has already taken into account in its proposed legislation. The automotive and its supplying industry are key to the wellbeing, innovation and employment here in Europe. What we wish to do is to ensure that we can maintain and guarantee the competitiveness of this industry in the future, and this has to be done according to an overarching approach, as the commission has said. Electrical energy is a technology of the future to achieve climate neutrality. But we also do have to be open to tech, to new types of technology. We have to be technology European. We have to take into account the differences in Europe after 2035, alongside battery electric vehicles, we should also have vehicles which would be permitted with other drivetrains, and this will then ensure. We hope that it will be possible to compensate for the emissions from these vehicles, but this has to be done in the whole value chain. As the commissioner said, by the use of sustainable materials, the European Green Deal, for example, or via the production of batteries within our European value chain to take into account the overall fleet objectives for vehicles within the proposed text by the Commission. We have some reservations about the Made in Europe proposal. The Commission has also suggested a. Made with Europe, which is currently under discussion. In conclusion, we think that the introduction as proposed for small electric vehicles is one which we would not be prepared to accept. At first glance, we are critical.”
Road transport environmental policy · 2035 ICE phase-out: strict zero-emission target vs. flexibility for carmakers
- “Deutschland Germany welcomes the council conclusions on mental health as [00:12:00] an important political political signal at EU level because they emphasise the national and international significance of the subject, particularly in the wake of the corona pandemic and other global crises. The Council conclusions can give an impetus to exchange of experience and knowledge between member states, and they stress the great importance of prevention that also applies to support to individuals who are in mental health crises, and also for suicide [00:12:30] prevention, which is a priority of the current German government. One key element of the council conclusions is that we should ensure attention is paid to people who are in vulnerable situations, and special efforts are indeed required to ensure that all people have access to prevention and good quality care. When people are mentally ill, they need good psychiatric care and psychotherapy, and many member states, including Germany, do have a high quality and diverse [00:13:00] range of care services available. Germany develops these services in constant dialogue with those concerned experts and professional associations and adapts them to need. And of course, a multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral cooperation is essential for this.”
EU policy on mental health
- “We are grateful to the Commission and the presidency for addressing this issue. On Utps. We also share many of the views of the Commission, and we welcome the fact that the directive was evaluated at such an early stage. This report gives valuable guidance for the revision of the UTP that's been announced. Now, we welcome the Commission's emphasis on the idea that these measures must contribute to achieving the Cap objectives and the vision for agriculture and food. In Germany's view, it's especially important to come up with effectively effective solutions, ones that are evidence based but which are still nevertheless low in red tape and that are capable of responding to the fresh challenges that utps pose. At the same time, we need to have a simple approach. We advocate having a debate on adapting the scope of the directive at EU level. It's important to us that we simplify the criteria for determining relevant annual turnover and arising from feedback from farmers and the food industry. We think we should also discuss expanding the blacklist. However, as regards having an instrument banning purchasing below production costs, Germany sees a need here for a more in-depth stock taking exercise, particularly given the major differences between individual costs involved. Thank you.”
EU policy on farmer–buyer relations in the agri-food supply chain
- “Yeah. Thank you. I can totally agree. Ambition and urgency are paramount to overcome market fragmentation. So, uh, I would like to thank the commission and also for the presidency that to speed up the negotiations and to intensify, or that they have intensified the frequency of the working group meetings, which is a highly useful to come to a swift agreement. And and as we said in the in the last Council meeting, we fully support to aim to reach a general agreement in the Council by summer 2026. Um, I would also like to emphasize, uh, that, that it is the overall package which makes makes the change in this respect as is, is, is is contains a lot of very, very important areas where we could move on in overcoming fragmentation and, uh, supervision, which should be efficient and current is, is one main element. But of course, the package contains also by others. And Germany stands ready to work on the overall package and to reach a swift progress indeed. Thank you.”
Overall simplification of regulation in the EU
- “Thank you. I think this really is directly related to the excellent and inspiring discussion we had yesterday evening. So I'd just like to thank you again for that. We had an opportunity to listen to one [00:09:30] another, uh, to discuss in depth, and I think it was really a very valuable evening indeed. I think we're going to be facing massive challenges in the future. And culture isn't just a nice to have. It's, you know, something that is really crucial, the lifeblood of our democracy. And as ministers for culture, I think we need to make extremely clear what value we place on cultural policy and how that is reflected [00:10:00] in EU policy. We need to make sure that EU policy has a place for cultural policy where it's really visible. And I think now, you know, is the apt time to be doing that, particularly with the run up to the upcoming elections for the European Parliament and the formation of a new College of commissioners. First and foremost, I want to call for the fact that culture would be explicitly referred to in the name and portfolio of the responsible commissioner in the future. Five years ago, there was [00:10:30] some serious discussion on removing culture from the portfolio of the relevant commissioner. And I think that would be really, you know, marginalizing culture. And I think it should be, you know, front and center, uh, really. Secondly, then Creative Europe, as we have heard time and time again, it's really an important element, one of the many we have. And I think, you know, maybe finance ministers won't like what I have to say here, but I don't really care about that. [00:10:59] I think [00:11:00] here and now already, when we're talking about the funding landscape for the next MFF, uh, for the period post 2028, we need to make quite clear what we're calling for already at this stage. We need to ensure continuity and visible European support for the cultural sector. Discussions are ongoing about a potential merger of this program with other larger EU funding programmes. And as [00:11:30] we've seen time and time again in the past, these proposals are put forward, but they never reflect the specific nature and importance of the cultural and creative sectors. And then thirdly, we have had a lot of legislative acts at the European level which have an impact on the cultural sector. But they are dealt with in other fora and at the commission and council level. So we really need to think about [00:12:00] how we can make improvements in comparison with the past, how we can ensure that we mainstream the cultural sector in all of these other different policy areas. So let's look at horizontal cultural clauses, for example, and how they can be incorporated more in line with the treaties for the EU, of course, as well. So I'm really calling on all of us to lobby on behalf of the cultural and creative sector to stand strong in favour of these things. And then finally, [00:12:30] and fourthly, I would like to take up a proposal that was made by President Macron. He said that it would be a good idea if the EU had some kind of culture pass, something that would be made available specific to the younger generations. That could be a concrete initiative that we could all get involved in. Thank you.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you chair. It is not the first discussion we have also in the Council today about the new MFF Five. And let me point out a few things which are really essential from the point of view of Germany, and I will do it in German.”
Size of EU budget
- “Thank you very much indeed, chair. I'm also very glad to see that Belgium has made this proposal. We very much welcome and would support this initiative. We have a climate adaptation legislation at national level, and we would be very much like to welcome the fact that we now have an EU level proposal on climate resilience, but we have to ensure that it is effective, but at the same time does not create added bureaucracy. And I would therefore like to ask that member States be more closely involved in the process, and particularly when it comes from legislative initiatives, that we should take reciprocity and proportionality into account.”
Climate efforts
- “Dear Chair, VEP and esteemed ministers, when it comes to the demands of the job market, well this is one of the strengths of the dual system. What is decisive here is that the social partners are part of the development prices when it comes to the educational systems and institutions when it comes to the vocational parts.
We believe that trainees need to be or with all of the work towards companies especially when it comes to the dual system. It's important to reduce gender, the gender gap. The yearly report looks at the jobs which are taken on board and are loved by young men and women.
The Ministry for Education does promote a cliche free job. We do promote the cliche free project. This is an initiative which really ensures that people can ensure professions without thinking of cliches. Society has to look at this across different parts of society, universities, schools and ensure that even employers can do that to ensure that young people can really choose a job which meets their demands which goes beyond the gender gaps.
I will now give the floor to the Minister for Education Faurel and thank you very much. I would like to complement three items when it comes to things that matter to us.
First, vocational training is important. We need of course educational offers which meet the demands of the job market and which do justice to the young people. Educational training and vocational training means that regardless of the language and origin and the potential disability have the same opportunities to training and vocational training and this is only possible if we have strong vocational institutions and where we really involve companies and on top of that if we also have a syllabus which really focuses on vocational skills.
A second item that I would like to focus on when it comes to vocational training we have to ensure that it becomes more attractive and more important in Europe. We believe that we should have an integrated practice for the educators which ensures that we can have an option for those people who want to train but can't afford to do so.
We want to promote more tools. We believe that European press practices are also important and we believe that we have been working with the Academie Norsimet from France, have been working with them since twenty twenty three and we have been leveraging this thanks to the Erasmus Plus program.
This cooperation with a partner region is very important because our people can also have shadowing at the job and many people have already mentioned this but I want to echo this when it comes to the gender diversity we have to ensure that it's important for STEM vocations.
We would like to look at two decisive factors. We have to promote STEM modules and gender equality. Children are very interested in research and discovery when we look at role models which are women which can really be important for young people.
Young people will be able to see STEM as an important matter. Our goal is very clear. We want to increase Europe's resilience. Thank you very much.”
Focus of EU policy on education (shaping workers vs citizens)
- “Thank you very much, Lars and dear colleagues, thank you very much for having given us this presentation on the law and the amendments to the climate law. Today is a day where we have to reach a decision. So the environment ministers will decide on the law by 2040. But it is our responsibility to reach a decision. Of course, we have to consider the national interests, but we have to find a common will to reach a decision for Europe's future. This is really the decisive moment when it comes to implementing environmental climate legislation and how we deal with nature. We shouldn't forget our competitiveness because this is a big challenge for us. The United States, for example. They are going back to fossil fuels. And when it comes to China, they are working a lot when it comes to new technological advances, and they are taking a considerable part of the market away from us. So we have to find a common voice and adopt a common path. And Germany therefore approves and supports the proposal of the commission. So to have a 90% reduction by 2040. And this indeed is the responsibility we should have, because over the past decades, we as developed countries have actually had a bigger level of emissions compared to other countries. In a couple of weeks, we have the Cop 30 in Belgium, which I'm sure will be a success, but this will be a way where we can achieve a common path.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Many thanks, dear president, dear Commissioner, internet and above all, social media for young people and children are an important social development, communication and information tool. They spend a lot of time there. They that's where they get information about what's going on in society and that is where they are more and more confronted, confronted with disinformation. This harms democratic discourse and does create a discrimination against certain groups of society. From the German point of view, we need several different approaches. First of all, we need to implement the legislation in terms of protecting children in media and digital age. And we also need to do something about online platforms. Secondly. Secondly, we need to take measures in education to support digital literacy, and in particular, children and young people must develop skills in in order not just to develop critical thinking, but also recognize one warning signs, check facts and also bring into play their own countermeasures. This includes, uh, warning, excuse me, notification and reporting mechanisms. On the national level, the German government is carrying out several projects to support this. And I'd just like to present them to you. We have an initiative growing up well with media. The Ministry for youth is supporting young people's, uh, skills, but also the skills of, uh, parents and educators. We have a common goal to protect young people, to ensure they participate fully.”
Safety features & content control for child protection online
- “Thank you. Germany would like to thank Hungary and Slovakia for updating the Agriculture Council on these cases of FMD in January. A first case of FMD was detected in January and unfortunately recently in Hungary two weeks later in Slovakia. So we know all too well what you are going through, and we would like to assure you of our full solidarity and support. We have made available 10,000 vaccine doses for Hungary from our FMD vaccine reserves, and we will offer to do the same for Slovakia. We would also like to support the request for a containment zone with the 0HH.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “Thank you very much, Ernest. Well, you've just said Slovenia [00:07:00] is a small country, but it's a small country with great literature. And above all, it has marvellous poetry. And I think in these times the world and we and our hearts really need poetry. And you illustrated that. When Slovenia made quite a marked appearance at the Frankfurt Book Fair. I think this was particularly [00:07:30] meaningful for young people. We're looking forward to next year because Italy is going to be taking centre stage, and I think you can take many of the examples followed by Slovenia. Thank you for drawing up this reading manifesto and presenting it here. We've had a very exciting discussion on that. We had a panel on that at the book fair. And I can only encourage my colleagues [00:08:00] and exhort them to sign this manifesto, because I think all of us share the underlying concern. We've heard a lot of talk about democracy today, and I think reading skills are actually a key competence for education and forming opinions. Forming opinions. Thanks to reading offers, new prospects, [00:08:30] new ideas and familiarize people with worlds that they are not aware of. And it also makes it possible for people to participate in democracy. And that only becomes clear when you realize the significance of reading in a democracy. That's why libraries are so important. Libraries in Europe are fueling stations from an intellectual and cultural point of view. And [00:09:00] with our Dutch colleagues, it was so important for us to strengthen these institutions. At the last council, we had a discussion on the particular relevance of that, and we're very much looking forward to the working party that was set up to look at that issue, the importance of reading, reading the importance of libraries as social and cultural places is something we've seen in recent weeks in Germany because, as you know, in Germany too, there is an increasing number [00:09:30] of anti-Semitic cases. This is dreadful. And particularly in German libraries, there was a rapid reaction to that with projects, events and readings. If we say never again, then we have to say never again now. And that's something that we very much advocate in Germany alongside the libraries.”
Jewish culture and antisemitism
- “Dank chair. Thank you very much. The microphone got cut for a second, but I'm back. We all understand that to be a successful technological and business This location. We. And by that I mean Europe as a whole, not just individual member states. We must all work together to achieve sovereignty in artificial intelligence. I think that requires us to show credibility in order to develop a competitive edge vis a vis the USA and China, for different reasons in each case. But nonetheless, one important condition is that we be successful in training large, powerful AI models in Europe. To that end, we need not only data and talent, but also computing power and specific computing infrastructure, which needs to be made available on a broad basis and used effectively. Germany is convinced that the initiative to change the legislation on Euro HPC will make a major contribution to improving AI computing infrastructure in Europe and improving its accessibility. Germany will make a major engagement to the implementation of the initiative. Let me give you an example. Germany is working to ensure that Jülich, where the Jupiter supercomputer is located, one of the strongest, most powerful AI computers anywhere in the world. We are working to set up an AI factory there. The idea behind AI factories is to provide data access to data, AI optimized computing capacity and services all in the same location. That should provide perfect conditions for AI as we move forward. Thank you very much.”
EU digital & tech sovereignty
- “Thank you very much, Ernest. We all remember that today. We've already had an intensive debate on the consequences of the pandemic. All of us suffered during the pandemic. But above all, those who suffered were young people who couldn't go out of the house when they were 16, 17 or 18 years old. I don't know what was the case for you, but when I was that age, we went to festivals, we went to the theatre. So culture was really an opportunity to enjoy freedom. And all of that didn't take place. And cultural institutions also suffered massively from that. We've referred to some thought to that, and I'd like to thank France very much indeed for providing massive support on this. How can we link this together? How can we have a new form of promoting culture, whilst at the same time we're able to focus on what is available, the cultural infrastructure and at the same time we can focus on users. That meant we've come up with a new form of promoting culture. Everything is taking place on a digital hub that's really exciting in Germany. Since June, the cultural pass has been in place. 8200 people are offering events. Over 2.5 million events have been proposed, as opposed to the 2000. 2000. That's the number of people becoming 18 people living in Germany. It doesn't matter whether they're German nationals or not. They just have to live in Germany. And about 40% of them have made use of the €200 they've loaded. Downloaded that on top of the list. We have books, then cinema third, then we have festivals, concerts for museums, theatre, fifthly, then musical instruments. And I really do believe that this is an essentially European project. So we have that between Germany and France. We would like people from France to be able to use the couture pass in Germany and vice versa. I'm pleased that Denmark has shown an interest in this, and I hope that this will expand across Europe, because once again, a culture is at the foundation of democracy, and this culture is a bit like an inter-rail ticket. It provides a guided tour in culture.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Mr. chair, Commissioner colleagues, of course, we are very well prepared for Euro 2024. Uh, that uh, being, uh, not applying to the political side of things when it comes to the actual sports, uh, of course, preparations are ongoing and we hope to be able to deliver [00:12:30] some pleasant surprises. But I'm very thankful that you gave us the opportunity to speak here today, because our experiences from the last year shows you know how important it is that all of these events take place in a good atmosphere. This is particularly important for the federal government, and that applies particularly to the hosting of major sports events. The German government has, uh, set in place specific criteria that link to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and the UN goals for Sustainable Development, [00:13:00] and linking the award of hosting rights and organization of major sporting events to those we have put in place a slogan for the games that is home game for Europe. And we're trying to highlight the fact that this isn't just a tournament for Germany. Uh, everybody is welcome. And as I just said there, this is a major event that is taking place in a member state of the European Union, and it is therefore a major event of the European Union as well. Not only [00:13:30] can we host these kind of major events as a democracy, but we also want to show that with the Euro 2024, we are going to defend common European values, which our member states all, of course, stand for, so that we can set in place standards for future events of this, uh, sort.
So together with the host cities where the games will be taking place and the various different organizers, that is a UEFA and the German Football Association, we all came together to get a common understanding of what we understand [00:14:00] as a sustainable Euro championship. We've got a new approach now and we're applying that to all sectors, everything that's involved when it comes to public transport, local associations and the stadia themselves. And we're covering all kinds, all aspects of sustainability when it comes to the environment and the ramifications of sports events on society as well. One result we have is the signature of a human rights declaration for the euros. Uh, next year, UEFA is working [00:14:30] together with the regional and national level and making sure that human rights issues are respected when it comes to preparing and organizing these games. When it comes to the private, uh, companies that are involved, as well as the supply chains involved with the organization of these games. So there's a number of examples there, but we want to involve everybody in a process which is based on the council conclusions of 4th of April 2022, to continue to develop that, so that we have a minimum standard for the staging of major sporting events in the European Union, which we can together build [00:15:00] on.
And then, of course, we also want to support the future hosting of, uh, major sporting events where we continue to display and convey our European values to the outside world. In this way, we can ensure that not just associations, but actually the citizens, the people in Europe will benefit from these major events as well. So it's going to be a home game when it comes to the euros next year. That's what's our guiding principle here, and I hope that we'll [00:15:30] get an opportunity to see you during these incredible games next year. I can imagine, you know, that not everybody is going to be up for Germany, but I think that, uh, we're seeing more and more, uh, work together, cooperation. And so I'm sure everybody will have their favorite team and we'll see who come away with the win at the end of it. But in any case, I'm certainly looking forward to it. And thank you very much for your attention.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you very much indeed. It's an important debate, especially given the jumbo meeting with Ecofin tomorrow, and the strategic agenda of the EU has to ensure, in the next few years that competitiveness and the social dimension of the EU work or proceed hand in hand. So there were times when certain economists and politicians believed that [00:22:30] competitiveness and growth can only work on the basis of inequalities. But those times are over. Thank goodness. After the crisis we've experienced this, I think there are more economists who realise that inclusive and sustainable growth is possible and desirable. It has a political dimension, of course. Jacques Delors, who died recently, said that it's not the internal market itself that anyone will fall in love with, it's its effects, of course, in order to be an [00:23:00] effective of course, we have called on people to be prepared for a lot of change. And they'll only do that, though when they have basic security as well. So there are three areas that we think should be on the agenda in this, uh, area. First, the role of social partners, uh, in, in accepting, of course, the digital and green transition. Specifically, we would want, uh, minimum standards for worker codecision [00:23:30] should be tackled. And as well as the binding effect of collective agreements, that's something we should work on as well. In Germany at the moment, we are bringing in conditionality on that basis of social criteria.
We think there should be social criteria as a condition for public procurement contracts to be awarded. Secondly, uh, fairer mobility in [00:24:00] Europe. Now mobility is one of our strengths, but we need to do even more to make it fair for workers. And I'm thinking in particular of strengthening the L.A., the labour agency, and also that we should take advantage of the opportunities offered by digital digital digitalisation so as to lessen bureaucratic red tape. And then thirdly, we've just been talking about platform [00:24:30] work. There's the question of the use of AI in the world of work. We need to organize that effectively. There is this question of algorithmic management as we've just been hearing. So we hope that in tomorrow's debate, the we will be able to make these points vis a vis our colleagues and as well as mention what we've achieved. But [00:25:00] the challenge will be, with an ageing population, that we should ensure we have the skills in the labour force that are required. So we need to ensure also that the council recommendation on minimum wage should also proceed. We think it's well, we've wanted for a long time to meet with Ecofin counterparts to talk about a sustainable model. The social market economy [00:25:30] and democracy are a key elements that have to be aligned with our economic policy. Thank you.”
EU policy on social criteria in public funding
- “As the Covid pandemic has shown all too clearly, we remain in essence critical of calls for insisting on imports from third countries being under similar production conditions to ours. So-called mirror clauses. The scope for this in trade policy and legislation is very limited. No, on the contrary, the EU should be promoting more coherence in production standards in multilateral terms, seeking consensual solutions, for example, in the context of new WTO negotiations. This takes me to question two. Given the tense geopolitics, it's more important than ever for Germany that Europe cannot be in a blackmailable position. This includes food supply. So the focus here should be to continue to be on making European agrifood as a whole system resilient and give it long term sustainability. That's how we can help to strengthen competitiveness, boost food security and achieve environmental goals. It's essential, as part of this, to afford farmers good economic prospects for the future. That calls for long term planning, certainty and reliable framework conditions. With regards to France's AOB point, we are concerned about developments in the prices of energy and fertiliser. We do think this is a major challenge for our farmers. It's important for us to keep short term burdens on businesses in mind, but at the same time, we need to reconcile that with the long term objectives of security, of supply, competitiveness and climate protection. Cbam is an important climate instrument. It protects the level playing field in the single market. We continue to see the December agreement as a good compromise. Thank you.”
Import of agri-food products in the EU
- “Dear colleagues, I too would like to start by expressing my sincere condolences to France, Belgium and Sweden for the victims of the horrendous attacks that took place. And I would also like to thank the Spanish presidency, who has done a great deal of work on this particular legal instrument [00:17:30] and is very keen to reach a compromise. And I'd like to thank Commissioner Johansson as well for the efforts made. Protection of children is extraordinarily important for us, too, and it's really important that we have additional regulations which go beyond April. And I would agree with what my French colleague said. That is, we need to ensure quickly that the voluntary obligations continue to apply for providers in order to avoid legal loopholes. But I do think that there are few things which need to be changed. In [00:18:00] particular when it comes to the methodology on the internet, when it comes to encrypted communication being tracked down. And it's important that we are able to reach agreement, which will benefit children. I'm sure we'll be able to do that. And we think it's key, that key to have a centre that children can contact, because the victims perspective is often given short shrift. We fail to focus adequately on that. And so that needs to be remedied. And a big thank you to you, Fernando, for all your efforts. You're doing a great deal in this area. And [00:18:30] thank you very much for your strong commitment.”
Privacy & detection of online child abuse
- “Thank you. David. We'd like to thank the Spanish presidency for guiding [00:41:00] the negotiations and preparing these council conclusions. Now, we, the Member States, are once again making clear that the European homeland for our citizens has its roots in rural areas. Necessary investments in a comprehensive infrastructure and provision of public services must be carried out with the involvement and commitment of local people. This [00:41:30] is why it's for. It's important for me that a citizen based bottom up approach that embodied by leader and clld in the entire European Union and in all areas, should be further developed in order to increase social, environmental and economic resilience. Culture and cultural traditions go hand in hand with the green social and digital transition, and I'm very [00:42:00] pleased that these conclusions emphasize these point. Our future, and not only in rural areas, will be dependent on people's satisfaction with the reduction of bureaucracy, the provision of digital infrastructure. Connections to local to public transport and infrastructure, as well as the implementation of the energy transition. [00:42:30] Therefore, rural areas must be involved in the implementation and further development of support measures for rural areas. The rural vision takes this into account, and we'll be happy to work with the European Commission to improve our independence. Our shared objective has to be to strengthen Europe from the inside out. Germany [00:43:00] can therefore support these conclusions. Thank you.”
Cohesion and rural funding
- “Thanks very much. I want to briefly address the commission's proposals. Many thanks to my French counterpart for talking about the, uh, nice conference and the eunuch. We are glad about that. This year, once again, with the very high water temperatures in the Mediterranean and the North Sea, See, we are seeing in Germany that there's almost no fish stocks. And there's a great, uh, overuse of transport. And this is also complicated by military conflicts. Germany has decided to beef up its MPAs even further and to promote marine protection concretely. The federal cabinet has decided with the parliament, the Bundestag, that oil and gas drilling in the Baltic will be forbidden in German waters. Secondly, we will be emphasizing the financial aspects of the proposal. Just as Denmark is doing in its own Baltic sector. Because seas are being poisoned and we wish to rectify this as soon as possible. I'm delighted also by the Commission's proposals that I have three points just to amplify them on the planned revision of the Msfd. The implementation process will take some time, but there are some weaknesses. Significantly. If we take the example of the lacklustre implementation of the obligatory environmental goals, in order to achieve good environmental status, we need more efficient and simplified implementation procedures. The implementation cycle should be tightened up and one of reporting deadlines in the cycle would help this process. We think it would also be a good step in cutting red tape. But it mustn't go at the. It mustn't cost the quality of environmental standards. Implementation of the directive is absolutely necessary. Thank you.”
Water pollution
- “Thank you. Chair. We to thank Austria for this major impetus that they've given to the current situation in the fertiliser market. We share their concerns about higher fertiliser prices and the burden that this represents. For farms. Fertilisers are a key cost factor for farming. Price increases directly affect businesses. It's for this very reason that we consider it important to monitor closely and continuously the market situation so that we can react early if necessary. We expressly support Austria's proposals to reinforce market transparency and monitoring, but without losing sight of the objective, which is to cut red tape across the EU. At the same time, Cbam is a key climate tool and it protects the level playing field in the internal market. We continue to regard the agreement we reached in December for fertilisers as a good compromise. Thank you.”
Use of fertilisers
- “Thank you David. I fully agree with Slovenia that it is important to maintain a strong focus on animal welfare. Currently, [00:18:30] important proposals have been put forward. It is crucial that priority is given to the proposal on protection of animals during transport. Furthermore, a number of important proposals are yet to be presented by the Commission. These include the proposals on the keeping of animals, on slaughter of animals and on animal welfare labelling. These proposals were expected by the end of 2023 and detailed scientific assessments have already [00:19:00] been presented. I strongly advise against further delay and count on the Commission to present the proposals as soon as possible. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers
- “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So thank you. We would also like to thank the Commission and the Swedish presidency very much indeed for moving swiftly to extend the transitional periods. A further challenge remains. Ensuring security of supply for niche products and extending the transitional periods is an important step forward, and it constitutes a significant improvement compared to the original month plus 24 that was originally envisaged, and we're very grateful for that. On the 16th of February, the text was tabled in the Parliament's plenary and was approved without any amendments with broad consensus. On the 7th of March, this was subsequently adopted, and we are grateful for the rules that have now been put in place in order to avoid bottlenecks in supply for certificates that are lapsing or expiring. These are rules that are of particular significance, and we would point out that we still have concerns around orphan devices. Very often these are medical devices that are used for children in pediatric care. And here we need improvements throughout industry in the process, but we are confident that that is something that can be envisaged. Thank you.”
Medical devices
- “I'm very grateful to the Belgian presidency for, uh, organizing a high ranking event on animal welfare. This reflects the significance that animal welfare has for people in Europe. [00:03:30] On a high standards, the EU has already, uh, several achievements. I very much welcome the commission proposals on improvements to animal, uh, welfare in transport and also introducing common standards on dogs and cats, on dogs and cats. I'm hoping that the work will make progress rapidly. And I thank the presidency for animal transport. I'm hoping that talks [00:04:00] will start by July at the latest. On the long term perspective, I, uh, I believe in particularly the points on the citizens initiatives on animals in cages and fur production and on, uh, food. Uh. Food labelling and animal welfare in slaughter.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers
- “Thank you very much. And first and foremost, thank you to Slovenia for submitting this info. Note to which we explicitly support. It must be our common goal to improve animal welfare standards at European level, to an ambitious level, and to sustainably improve conditions for animals. More animal welfare will improve animal health, allow for a reduction [00:26:00] in use of veterinary medicine, and therefore be a financially favorable for farmers without improving animal welfare. Acceptance of consumers for livestock rearing will continue to fall in this connection. Informative labeling with information about animal welfare standards is very important for us, so I wanted to stress that. So Germany warmly welcomes the fact that the current Commission has [00:26:30] submitted proposals for a regulation on the welfare of dogs and cats and on animal transport, but that alone is not enough. In Germany's view, it would be extremely important for the next commission to undertake a revision of all EU animal welfare provisions. Where specific rules are missing at EU level, they need to be created for certain species, such as turkeys. For fattening cattle, there are two. We need minimum standards for animal friendly husbandry at EU [00:27:00] level. Finally, the existing rules and regulations where there are difficulties in implementation or where there is new scientific evidence, adjustments and adaptation will be urgently needed. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers
- “In view of the major challenges, basically new approaches for to the structure of the MFF should not be taken off the table prematurely. It's vital that we give further thought to these areas and we should keep the discussion open on them. And the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture also expressly called upon the Commission to subject these plans to a rural test or rural proofing. But in order to do that, rural development must first remain an integral part of the cap. And it must be it must have an appropriate budget earmarked for it. But rural development needs to be borne in mind as part of all policies as well. And it's important that we continue to promote the leader based, bottom up based approach. This is something which could be applied in other policy areas. Cohesion policy in particular, so that it can be extended, expanded and strengthened. It's also vital to ensure that we can address and promote cohesion policy in a targeted manner as part of rural development, and the Commission's efforts towards simplification should lead to results. In particular, in order to ensure that the beneficiaries, the recipients of support, can be able to avail themselves of all the opportunities that they have. Thank you very much.”
Cohesion and rural funding
- “I just asked for the floor to. Allowing the solidarity with Finland and Estonia. Kai and Christian being a country that also suffered after the damage or sabotage of a gas pipeline. [00:12:30] After that, we established a close monitoring and working group. In that case with Norway, to protect the pipeline from Germany to Norway. And I just want to offer the cooperation there that we join forces and learn from each other's experiences. Secondly, I would like to stress out that Germany also is trying to increase its capacity in the case of need. So we are building three new LNG terminals being ready and [00:13:00] and online in this winter.”
EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
- “Uh, like other member states. We are seeing an increase in avian flu in poultry and other birds in Germany. These outbreaks are concern mainly laying hens, turkeys, ducks and geese. In the flocks are concerned. All animals that are are believed to have the flu are killed. In the case of a wild birds, the number of cases is also increased and avian flu has been present. Present in the European Union for years. But this year we have noticed an increase in the number of cases due to the annual migration in the autumn, we have observed a shift with regard to the species concerned. Unlike in previous years, for example, we have seen a strong increase in the in avian flu in cranes are. Experts believe that there is a postponed the migration times have been postponed. This may result also in more intensive contact between cranes and other birds, which had not been in in contact with the virus before. The long distances that migratory birds are travel are are significant, and their flight routes are often cross-border. So we must work together in order to uphold biosecurity. Last Thursday, I discussed the situation with the state ministries responsible for combating animal diseases, and the veterinary authorities are familiar with control measures and they are controlling the situation rather well. Compliance with biosecurity measures in poultry holdings remain important. I would also like to. To thank the presidency for the opportunity to, uh, to, uh, fight this, to control this animal disease, which has to be controlled quickly and effectively. The risk of the Friedrich Loeffler Institute has classified the risk of avian flu in poultry, poultry holdings as high for Germany. And we will closely monitor the situation and maintain you informed. Thank you.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “Thank you. I'd also like to express my gratitude for this initiative. In Germany, there's a series of measures that we're supporting in conjunction with major AI models. We have AI competence centers in Munich and Dortmund, and we also have a research center for [00:09:00] AI. The Federal Government is promoting open GPT X and this studies the development of digital text generators. It's important for us that European AI models are facilitated on the basis of European values. Most of these models come from the United States, not from Europe. And here there's a risk of developing new dependencies [00:09:30] and we don't want to lose digital sovereignty. Therefore, it's very important for us to be active and proactive and have an AI based on our own values. Thank you.”
EU digital & tech sovereignty
- “We've heard about that already. And then we have an AI campus, which is an interoperable learning platform with a lot of material available and makes available, uh, certain AI models. Sonia would like to take over from me now. Yes. On [00:23:00] behalf of the lender. Uh, we. Have looked at I in a critical fashion, and since 2023 we have had recommendations as to how it should be used in schools and training programmes have been made available as well. For we've identified areas of focus. So identification of a I generated material, changing of course [00:23:30] of exam uh arrangements on that basis, but also the need for regulation at questions of access on uh to to material using I. Of course it is very important that schools uh and teaching methods should develop a. On the basis of. Language [00:24:00] model, for example, that we can have an exchange over here and. It is very important that we can combine science and evidence based approaches to the access to AI, and that needs to we need to investigate how that can better be done at the level of schools. So we need pilot projects and uh, uh, the to do with the use of AI models [00:24:30] at school level. And in the European context, we could perhaps usefully establish best practice in that context. Uh, we also need to have systems for ensuring quality ethical guidelines, European standards as to how a AI is used. Thank you very much.”
Governance of academic priorities within the EU
- “We think that there are further two points we need to take into account. Thematic priorities for European priority projects. That needs to be reflected so that we have a consistent portfolio of partnerships. And then when it comes to managing the fund, we need to ensure that national arrangements are fully reflected. Now, we are generally in favour of strengthening a base oriented approach and fostering further excellence and competitiveness. We think that research based priorities need to be reflected, perhaps in a recital, and P ten needs to be as effectively as possible drafted and based on the existing tools. There is a proposal for using, uh, which has been put forward also by Germany and can be further discussed in the process. One concern that is of particular importance to us is we'd like a something for the minutes from the commission about FP nine and and the um researcher into embryos. And we can help with the text. Another point is that we want association of third countries as well. That is important for our innovation capacity. And we would like an association to, with FP ten of important partners. We fully support that. We look forward to further negotiations and hope for a general partial general approach to be agreed in June. Thank you.”
Research priorities within the EU
- “Madam chairman. Commissioner, thank you very much. Thank you for placing this at the focus of our attention today. And thank you for the excellent workshop in Danzig, which you also mentioned. The study from the Statistical Office was very clear, and the debates were very good as well. And that only confirmed the German position that in order to set the scene, the age limit for the standard old age pension will gradually rise to 67 by 2031. This year It's those who are 66 and two months old, and we don't see any further need to raise the retirement age, because by 2031, the retirement age will be rising faster than life expectancy, according to scientific modelling. And therefore, and this is the point that you made, madam chairman, we have to talk about actual employment on a voluntary basis up until the retirement age and beyond. That's what we want to make possible. It's a source of improved income and welfare. The key factors are health, quality, jobs, motivation by allowing part time work. And that creates the conditions for working longer in Germany. We have a lot of further training possibilities, but I won't go into too much detail. We have an extremely Uh, good retraining system. European pension system invests €8 billion every year for vocational and medical rehabilitation.”
EU policy on aging workforce and pensions
- “Firstly, on structure, I would just repeat clearly that Germany will not agree to an MFF which does not involve modernisation given the global challenges we face. The time is now. We need these new structures and we support the reform proposed by the Commission. We are grateful, too, for the presidency's first proposals for the negotiations box in terms of anchoring this modernisation and in the light of Pyotr's arguments today, simplification, flexibility, prioritizing competitiveness, security and defence. We support this approach. And since a lot has been said about this already today we need a horizontal cut to the excessive volume. Excessive volumes proposed in terms. In this respect, we must ensure that the resources can be effectively used in the period in question. We have to set out in the negotiating box the clear options, three focal points. Firstly, the crisis reaction mechanism and Catalyst Europe. This sort of approach we are against, and secondly, the corrections on the income side, which remain essential to avoid excessive imbalances. And thirdly, in the negotiating box, the issue of nuclear funding nuclear has to be covered as well. On governance, like many.”
Size of EU budget
- “Thank you very much. And in particular, we would like to thank Italy for its comments on this important file. Animal husbandry will remain an integral part of our agriculture, but keeping animals, of course, means transporting animals. Union wide rules on animal welfare during transport benefit both animals and operators who require a level playing field. Germany believes that these animal welfare rules should be designed in such a way as to ensure the welfare of the animals without preventing unnecessary transport, or disproportionately burdening businesses and authorities, or interfering in international trade. The Commission's legislative proposal takes these principles into account to a large extent, but we do still need to discuss them further to achieve a balance. Germany will remain constructive with the aim of agreeing on a text for negotiations with Parliament. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers