Remarks by President Charles Michel following the European Council meeting of 22 March 2024

Today, the Kremlin spokesperson announced that a state of war had been declared in Russia. In fact, this confirms the accuracy of what we have been saying all along, and constitutes a belated acknowledgement by Russia that it has indeed triggered a war – and not merely a ‘special operation’ – against Ukraine. In the light of that announcement, I wanted to point out that the discussions we had and the decisions we took yesterday in relation to Ukraine, together with our preparations for and commitment to European defence, are now more relevant than ever. They show our commitment to act to uphold peace, security and stability, by preparing enhanced capabilities on the ground as well as European defence capabilities. That is the first point I wanted to address.

Second, today we had with us the leaders of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. This is the 30th anniversary of the EEA, the European Economic Area. This is a unique group with 30 countries, half a billion people, the world’s largest internal market. And this more than about the economy, this is more than about prosperity, it is also about our common values. And we want to work together to build more common resilience. We want to cooperate much more. This is the case, for instance, on some very fundamental geopolitical topics, like our support for Ukraine and our action to sanction Russia and the Russian economy. We are optimistic that in the years to come, we will continue to work closely with all of them - they are our partners, they are our friends - to build a strong economic market.

Today we also had another important meeting, the Euro Summit. That summit, which was held in the presence of Christine Lagarde and Paschal Donohoe, provided an opportunity to discuss the economic and financial situation, to observe the downward trend in inflation and to discuss the conditions for ensuring progress in terms of more growth, more development and more economic activity. We found that it was essential to continue to strengthen coordination between us in order to ensure consistency and the capacity to further develop economic activity.

I would like to emphasise one point which, in my view, constitutes the focal point of today’s discussions. And that focal point is the issue of investment. We clearly need more public and private investment at a time when we are facing transformations in the socio-economic paradigm, on the one hand, and the green and digital transformation, on the other, with developments that are also linked to geopolitical tensions and Russia’s war against Ukraine, as well as the implications for areas such as energy. At a moment such as this, we are well aware of the need for both public and private investment. We therefore held specific debates on that topic.

And one point which I consider essential in relation to investment is the role played by the capital markets union. I realise that this topic has been a regular fixture on the European political agenda and on the European leaders’ table for many years now. But now we sense a greater awareness than ever before, in my view, of the need to step up the pace in that regard and to implement measures. Consequently, the question is not whether or not there will be progress, but rather how to transform that progress into specific action. That was the mandate given to our ambassadors in Coreper in order to be able to move forward as early as the April European Council, which will be devoted in particular to the issue of competitiveness, while also taking into account the report to be prepared by Enrico Letta. This element of investment through the capital markets union will form an absolutely essential part of the puzzle. It is essential for our sovereignty; for strengthening the fabric of large companies and of small and medium-sized enterprises; for investing in sectors of critical importance for the future (security, defence, the Green Deal and the digital strategy); and for ensuring innovation and competitiveness. Finally, we had an opportunity to welcome the progress made by Bulgaria on its path towards the euro area. That’s another point I would like to highlight.

Finally, agriculture. Our farmers have legitimate concerns and we are determined to support them because they play a fundamental role for all of us. They deserve a fair income and we want to do more. We exchanged views on the state of play and on the measures we put in place. We need to work further. We need to cut red tape. We need to make sure that there is fair competition within the single market, but also globally with a good decision on the topic. The European Council intends to revert to the matter in April. We will certainly once again have the occasion to discuss this topic, and to show that we want the EU to make good steps in the right direction to support them, and to find the right balance in that field.