UPN, Alm.del - 2021-22 - Bilag 210: Konklusioner fra møde i Det Europæiske Råd den 24.-25. marts 2022

Det Udenrigspolitiske Nævn 2021-22
UPN Alm.del Bilag 210
Offentligt

European Council

Brussels, 25 March 2022

(OR. en)

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CO EUR 1

CONCL 1

NOTE

From:

To:

Subject:

General Secretariat of the Council

Delegations

European Council meeting (24 and 25 March 2022)

–

Conclusions

Delegations will find attached the conclusions adopted by the European Council at the above

meeting.

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Conclusions

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24 and 25 March 2022

The European Council held an exchange of views with the President of the United States on

transatlantic cooperation in the context of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine.

RUSSIAN MILITARY AGGRESSION AGAINST UKRAINE

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine grossly violates international law and is

causing massive loss of life and injury to civilians. Russia is directing attacks against

the civilian population and is targeting civilian objects, including hospitals, medical

facilities, schools and shelters. These war crimes must stop immediately. Those

responsible, and their accomplices, will be held to account in accordance with

international law. The siege of Mariupol and other Ukrainian cities, and the denial of

humanitarian access by Russian military forces are unacceptable. Russian forces must

immediately provide for safe pathways to other parts of Ukraine, as well as

humanitarian aid to be delivered to Mariupol and other besieged cities.

The European Council urges Russia to urgently guarantee safe passage to civilians

entrapped in all other war zones to a destination of their choice, to immediately release

all hostages, to provide uninterrupted humanitarian access and to establish humanitarian

corridors. It also urges Russia to fully respect its obligations under international law,

including international humanitarian law, and abide by the recent order by the

International Court of Justice.

The European Council demands that Russia immediately stop its military aggression in

the territory of Ukraine, immediately and unconditionally withdraw all forces and

military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine, and fully respect Ukraine’s

territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence within its internationally recognised

borders.

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Conclusions

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24 and 25 March 2022

The European Union stands by Ukraine and its people and the European Council

reaffirms the Versailles Declaration, acknowledging the European aspirations and the

European choice of Ukraine, as stated in the Association Agreement. The European

Council reiterates its invitation to the Commission to submit its opinion in accordance

with the relevant provisions of the Treaties. The European Union will continue to

provide coordinated political, financial, material and humanitarian support. The

European Union has so far adopted significant sanctions that are having a massive

impact on Russia and Belarus, and remains ready to close loopholes and target actual

and possible circumvention as well as to move quickly with further coordinated robust

sanctions on Russia and Belarus to effectively thwart Russian abilities to continue the

aggression. The European Council calls on all countries to align with those sanctions.

Any attempts to circumvent sanctions or to aid Russia by other means must be stopped.

The Russian military aggression against Ukraine has forced millions of people to flee

their homes. Many of them have found shelter and safety in the European Union,

facilitated by the temporary protection mechanism. Particular attention should be paid to

the needs of the most vulnerable and measures to prevent and detect human trafficking.

The European Council pays tribute to all the citizens, organisations and governments

across Europe who have shown solidarity with those fleeing this atrocious war.

This crisis represents a significant challenge for the infrastructure and public services of

hosting States, notably at the borders with Ukraine. The European Council recognises

all the efforts already made to welcome refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine, and calls

on all Member States to intensify their efforts in a continued spirit of unity and

solidarity, and invites the Commission to take any necessary initiatives to facilitate such

efforts. It also calls for work to be urgently completed on the recent Commission

proposals to support Member States so as to ensure that EU funding for refugees and

their hosts can be mobilised rapidly and invites the Commission to work on additional

proposals to reinforce EU support in this regard. It calls on the Member States, with the

support of the Commission, to develop contingency plans to address medium- and long-

term needs as well.

The European Union is committed to ensuring continuous and uninterrupted electricity

and gas flows to Ukraine. The recent synchronisation of Ukrainian and Moldovan

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electricity grids with the EU’s grids is a remarkable achievement. It shows that our

futures are now interconnected. The safety of Ukrainian nuclear facilities must be

ensured, including with the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Bearing in mind the destruction and enormous losses brought upon Ukraine by Russia’s

military aggression, the European Union is committed to provide support to the

Ukrainian Government for its immediate needs and, once the Russian onslaught has

ceased, for the reconstruction of a democratic Ukraine. To that end, the European

Council agrees to develop a Ukraine Solidarity Trust Fund and invites its international

partners to participate, and calls for preparations to start without delay. It calls on the

Commission to continue to provide technical assistance in order to help Ukraine

implement necessary reforms.

The European Council calls for an international conference to be organised in due time

to raise funding under the Ukraine Solidarity Trust Fund.

10.

The European Council also reaffirms its commitment to stand by the Republic of

Moldova and its people.

II.

SECURITY AND DEFENCE

11.

Recalling the Versailles agenda, the European Council held a strategic debate on

security and defence, taking into account the new security situation in Europe which is a

major shift in its strategic environment.

12.

The European Council endorses the Strategic Compass, which provides the strategic

guidance for the next decade and defines a coherent set of actions, ways and means, and

clear targets required for this new impetus by:

enabling the European Union to act more quickly and decisively when facing

crises;

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securing our interests and protecting our citizens by strengthening the European

Union’s capacity to anticipate and mitigate threats;

stimulating investment and innovation to jointly develop the necessary

capabilities and technologies;

deepening our cooperation with partners to achieve common goals.

It invites the Council to immediately take work forward on the implementation of the

Strategic Compass, according to the timetable therein.

13.

The European Council looks forward to an analysis to be developed by the Commission

by mid-May, in coordination with the European Defence Agency, of the defence

investment gaps and to the proposals for any further initiative necessary to strengthen

the European defence industrial and technological base. This will feed into efforts to

strengthen the European Union’s resilience and to increase its security and defence

capacity through more and better investments, focusing on identified strategic shortfalls.

It invites the Council to advance work on the recent Commission proposals.

14.

In order to strengthen the defence capabilities of the European Union and of Member

States, the full potential of the European Union’s funding instruments and initiatives, in

particular the European Defence Fund and the Permanent Structured Cooperation,

the

Capability

Development

Plan and the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence, should be

harnessed. In addition, measures should be taken by the end of 2022 to promote and

facilitate access to private funding for the defence industry, also by making best use of the

possibilities offered by the European Investment Bank.

The European Council will

regularly assess the implementation of the Strategic Compass and progress in the area of

security and defence. It will provide further guidance if needed.

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III. ENERGY

15.

The European Union will phase out its dependency on Russian gas, oil and coal imports

as soon as possible, as set out in the Versailles Declaration. Therefore, the European

Council looks forward to the comprehensive and ambitious plan, elaborated in close

coordination with Member States, that the Commission will submit to this effect by the

end of May 2022. National circumstances and Member States’ energy mix will be taken

into account.

16.

Sustained high energy prices have an increasingly negative impact on citizens and

businesses, which is further compounded by the Russian military aggression against

Ukraine. The European Council discussed how to provide further relief to the most

vulnerable consumers and how to support European businesses in the short term.

The European Council:

invites the Member States and the Commission to continue to make best use of the

toolbox, including the new State aid temporary crisis framework, as a time-limited

departure from the status quo. As proposed by the Commission, temporary

taxation of or regulatory interventions on windfall profits can be a useful source of

national financing;

tasks the Council and the Commission, as a matter of urgency, to reach out to the

energy stakeholders, and to discuss, if and how, the short-term options as

presented by the Commission (direct support to consumers through vouchers, tax

rebates or through an "aggregator model/single buyer", State aid, taxation (excises

and VAT), price caps, regulatory measures such as contracts for differences)

would contribute to reducing the gas price and addressing its contagion effect on

electricity markets, taking into account national circumstances;

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calls on the Commission to submit proposals that effectively address the problem

of excessive electricity prices while preserving the integrity of the Single Market,

maintaining incentives for the green transition, preserving the security of supply

and avoiding disproportionate budgetary costs.

In the present context of very high electricity prices, the Commission stands ready to

urgently assess the compatibility of emergency temporary measures in the electricity

market notified by Member States, including to mitigate the impact of fossil fuel prices

in electricity production, with the provisions of the Treaties and Regulation 2019/943.

In assessing such compatibility, the Commission will also ensure, through an

accelerated procedure, that the following conditions are met: the measures reduce spot

electricity market prices for companies and consumers and they do not affect trading

conditions to an extent contrary to the common interest. In making this assessment, the

temporary nature of the measures and the level of electricity interconnectivity with the

single market for electricity will be taken into account.

17.

The European Council reviewed

the EU’s immediate term preparedness and tasked the

Council to examine the proposals by the Commission on EU gas storage policy duly

taking into account and addressing the interests of the Member States with significant

storage capacity in order to ensure a fair balance. Refilling of gas storage across the

Union should start as soon as possible, taking fully into account national preparedness

measures. With a view to next winter, Member States and the Commission will

urgently:

establish the necessary solidarity and compensation mechanisms;

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work together on voluntary common purchase of gas, LNG and hydrogen, making

optimal use of the collective political and market weight of the European Union

and its Member States to dampen prices in negotiations. The common purchases

platform will also be open for Western Balkan countries and the three associated

Eastern Partners;

complete and improve our gas and electricity interconnections throughout the

European Union, including full synchronisation of power grids;

18.

work on ensuring the security of supplies for all Member States.

Energy security and climate neutrality can only be achieved if the European Union

relies on a robust and fully interconnected internal electricity market and a well-

functioning carbon market. The European Council discussed how to take work forward

on monitoring and optimising their functioning. It invites the Commission to take any

necessary initiatives by May 2022, also taking into account the final ACER and ESMA

reports.

19.

The European Union will continue to coordinate with international partners in order to

ensure adequate supply and to mitigate the increase of energy prices.

IV.

ECONOMIC ISSUES

20.

The European Council calls for work to be taken forward on the implementation of the

Versailles Declaration on building a more open and robust economic base, notably by

reducing our strategic dependencies in the most sensitive areas such as critical raw

materials, semi-conductors, health, digital and food, and by pursuing an ambitious and

robust trade policy, as well as by fostering investment.

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21.

Thirty years after its creation the Single Market remains one of

the European Union’s

primary assets for sustainable growth and job creation, and is key to accelerating its

green and digital transitions as well as strengthening the resilience of our economies. It

is necessary to ensure the functioning of the Single Market also in times of crisis. For

the Single Market to realise its full potential for the benefit of European consumers and

contribute to boosting productivity and increasing the competitiveness of European

businesses, the European Council calls for:

strictly implementing and enforcing the Single Market rules and ensuring that all

companies comply with EU harmonised standards and competition rules;

implementing the industrial strategy and the SME strategy;

completing the Single Market, in particular for digital and services;

closely monitoring and preventing bottlenecks as well as removing remaining

unjustified barriers and administrative burdens and avoiding new ones;

better interconnecting ecosystems across Member States, and securing and

diversifying supply chains;

22.

sustaining the European Union’s capacity as an international standard setter.

The European Council held an exchange of views on recent economic developments. It

endorses the policy priorities of the Annual Sustainable Growth Survey and invites

Member States to reflect them in their National Reform Programmes and Stability or

Convergence Programmes. It also endorses the draft Council Recommendation on the

economic policy of the euro area.

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23.

The European Council invites the Council, taking into account the specific situations of

all Member States, to take work forward on the Commission’s communication on rising

food prices and global food security, which sets out both short-term measures to address

food affordability in the European Union and help farmers facing high input costs, and

medium-term measures to support the transition to a sustainable food system.

24.

The European Council invites the Commission, in coordination with international

partners, to prioritise work on global food security and affordability, in particular by

supporting food security and agriculture in Ukraine and the most vulnerable and

exposed third countries. This will be the core objective of the FARM (Food and

Agricultural Resilience Mission) initiative. This multilateral work should ensure the

efficient functioning of the markets and encourage local production to reduce the risk of

food insecurity. The integrity of food supply chains should be preserved.

COVID-19

25.

The European Council reviewed coordination efforts in response to the COVID-19

pandemic.

26.

It took stock of progress in the deployment of international cooperation on global health

governance and solidarity, including through an improved roll-out of vaccines and,

under the auspices of the World Health Organization, work on a future instrument to

strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. It also welcomes the

progress made concerning the issue of intellectual property rights in the World Trade

Organization.

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VI.

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

27.

The European Council prepared the EU-China summit to be held on 1 April 2022.

It exchanged views on relations with China in the new global context, in particular the

Russian military aggression against Ukraine.

28.

The European Council discussed the prolonged political crisis in Bosnia and

Herzegovina. The European Union reiterates its commitment to the European

perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Western Balkans. Leaders in Bosnia and

Herzegovina need to demonstrate a strong commitment to finalise swiftly the

constitutional and electoral reform, vital for stability and full functionality of the

country, as well as to support all other priority reforms set out in the Commission’s

Opinion to obtain a candidate status. The European Union stands ready to continue its

high-level engagement in this regard.

VII. NEXT STEPS

29.

The European Council will revert to all these issues at a special meeting.

VIII. OTHER ITEMS

30.

The European Council re-elected Mr Charles MICHEL President of the European

Council for the period from 1 June 2022 until 30 November 2024.

31.

The European Council noted the decision of the Heads of State or Government of the

Contracting Parties to the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the

Economic and Monetary Union whose currency is the euro re-appointing Mr Charles

MICHEL President of the Euro Summit for the period from 1 June 2022 until

30 November 2024.

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