@ALDEParty Congress resolutions 2014 - Strengthening the Global Role of the European Union

Meanwhile, the Finns from Suomen Keskusta offer some proposals for who we should be talking to and why...

The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party convening in Lisbon, Portugal on 20-22 November 2014:

Notes that

• the European Union is the leading global actor in the fields of trade, development and environmental policies and has a key role in ensuring the stability of the global financial system;
• these policy areas are strongly linked into each other and they have growing strategic importance for the EU;
• in these policy areas we can play a positive global role by promoting the common interests and the common values and ideals of mankind - the fight against poverty; environmental, economic and social sustainability all over the world; democracy, human rights and equality as the basis of social sustainability;
• at a global level we can create transatlantic partnerships with the United States since our basic values and interests in these policy areas are close to each other. In development policy we already have close cooperation launched at the Washington Summit in November 2009. Similar partnerships can be created in the fields of trade and the environment;
• the EU has traditionally close ties with the ACP countries and other developing countries, these must be further enhanced;
• China and other emerging countries have growing influence on global development; our dialogue and cooperation with them must be strengthened;

Stresses that

• the European Union can strengthen its global role by coordinating its action in different policy fields and by setting clear strategic goals;
• the EU can counterbalance the role of other global players by creating partnerships with like-minded countries;
• the EU can influence the policies of other countries and groups of countries through an open dialogue on the common challenges facing mankind;

Calls on

• the ALDE Party to work for the strengthening of the global role of the EU. The EU should have a comprehensive global strategy as a central part of our external policies;
• the ALDE Member Party representatives in the European Parliament, in the national parliaments and the European Council to work for the strengthening of the global role of the EU.