SPEECHES AND STATEMENTS

Speech by President Rosen Plevneliev at the Berlin Global Forum: Europe and the Emerging Economies: Sharing Responsibility

Dear Ambassador Shäfer,
Excellences,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

As a president, but also as an engineer, I know for sure: If you want to solve a problem, you need to address the problem, you need to face it and take a bold decision. Unfortunately, today many politicians hide, delay or shift problems to the next governments, even the next generations. In the past political decision was THE DECISION, the ultimate decision. When it is difficult, when there is a deep crisis, when there is no other option, then you take a political decision. Unfortunately, there are many examples today, that political decision is no decision at all. Just one example. In the Iraqi crisis the UN was capable to establish humanitarian aid corridor within days. With the Syrian crises, it takes more than 5 years and there is no safe humanitarian aid corridor even today.  

The number of crises around the world is at a record high. The challenges ahead of us are very serious and we cannot afford to wait, delay or shift them to the next generation. We need to act, we need to take decisions. A decision could be only right or wrong, but sometimes even a wrong decision is better than no decision at all. A wrong decision could be repaired, no decision creates a dangerous grey zone of illegitimacy and instability. Being indifferent is not an option today. At the BMW Foundation Global Table Discussion we address major regional and global challenges ahead of us. To solve them we need to address them. Let me point out at some global challenges we face today.

First global challenge: Rule of law. Every crises could be traced back to its initial phase when someone violated the rules. But peace could be achieved only when there are rules that apply to everyone. Without rules there is no peace. We need to establish efficient mechanisms to guarantee the rule of law. Today it is possible even for a permanent member of the UN Security Council not to stick with the rules and principles of the international order.

Second global challenge: early detection of crises. We see weapons and use of force at so many places around the world today. But the use of weapons is not an argument, it is the absence of arguments. It is the last option. We should not wait for the weapons and for the crises to appear on the TV screens, in order to act. Peace is not just the absence of war. Peace is human rights. Peace is rule of law. We need an early detection system to be activated at the UN, when those universal values are violated, to prevent further crises development.

Third global challenge: Climate change, migration, terrorism, security threads do not start on our borders. They go beyond our borders. To address them we need to integrate and join our efforts. Terrorists can be defeated by the international coalition. But the terrorist’s ideology cannot be defeated by weapons, it could be defeated only trough better ideas, tolerant societies and education.  

Fourth global challenge: The West and Russia are opponents once again. Unfortunately. The game in Europe has changed. The Ukrainian crises is the game changer. We have entered a new phase, which I call “a cold peace”. It is peace, because nobody wants a war and nobody wants to go back to the cold war. But it is a “cold peace”, because, unfortunately, Russia and the West are opposing to each other today. As the EU struggles to stay united on the sanctions, Russia is using every opportunity to divide and weaken the EU.  

Fifth global challenge: Global interests vs. global principles. Today’s Russia believes and acts based on the ideology of great powers with their spheres of interest and periphery between them, where great powers should sit together and decide about the periphery. On the other hand we have the European Union, which is a unique project for peace, where big Germany with 80 million and small Estonia with 1, 3 million citizens have same rights. And where consensus-driven policies make every state important. No state is periphery or subordinate. Everyone is a partner and everyone matters, no matter big or small, rich or poor. On the world stage we hope to see global interests that reflect the guiding principles and values of international order and not oppose or even destroy them. We should not allow the world to return back to the power politics of 20 century of great powers and periphery between them. That is very dangerous.

Sixth global challenge: Frozen conflicts – their number rises. East Ukraine could be the next one. Is that what we offer to the people of East Ukraine?  Are they going to live better in the frozen conflict area, run by an illegitimate groups and their guns? Look at the other frozen conflict areas. Do people there live better? Are they more free, more save and more prosperous?  Who is going to invest in a frozen conflict area? If we think about people and their right to live in peace and prosperity, we need to oppose this wrong and dangerous strategy of keeping regions, countries and nations unstable and dependent.

Seventh global challenge: Nationalism vs. patriotism. There is a new wave of nationalism in Europe, addressing people’s fears on migration, a lack of economic perspective, high unemployment and others. Nationalists have a loud voice, they are aggressive and they are on the rise. Modern patriotism, not nationalism is needed, more than ever today. We should make the difference between nationalists and patriots. A wise president, the French president De Gaulle, once said: “Patriots are those who love their country, nationalists are those, who hate the different”.

Dear friends,

I see some other challenges such as the low inclusiveness of globalization, the level of education vs. the unprecedented technological boom, by which it is expected, 80% of the world’s adult population to have a supercomputer in their pocket, by 2020.  I see challenges coming out of the wrong interpretation and even manipulation of history, or not learning our lessons from history.

Just one example. Seventy years ago, at the end of World War II, Europe was in ruins. The determination to never let such devastation happen again gave birth to United Europe. Enemies became partners and friends, working together for a common future, sharing the same values. Integration and cooperation proved to be an engine of peace and prosperity and an antidote to destabilization.

The interests-driven policy of Great Powers and periphery between them, which is on the rise again, provokes the existence of conflicts. Closing our eyes to this threat is not a sustainable political solution. This is a bitter reminder that what the international community has achieved in the last decades cannot be taken for granted; that the principles we built our world upon are not set in stone and it is up to all of us  to respect, promote and protect them.

Dear friends,

We, in the EU, should not only address the crises, but solve them. We should adopt a proactive approach – problems need to be solved as soon as they arise, we must not postpone and thus aggravate them. And most importantly, we should focus on our unity. Only together can we be efficient. The EU is a family. Solidarity in the family is based on the responsibility of every member. Yes, we will help Greece, however reforms are expected; responsibility is expected. Yes, we will solve the problem with the refugees, however, not a single state can solve it alone. It is high time we united and pooled efforts to cope with the reasons for the crisis, not only solve its consequences.

Today by imposing mutual blockades of borders, by using water cannons and tear gas against the refugees, in the very heart of Europe, the EU is standing against its own rules, against its own values and identity.

Look at Schengen. Schengen is not merely a European law or directive. It is the dream for a Europe without borders, so that you can travel from Sofia to Berlin and from Krakow to Paris without showing your passport. However, today some EU member states impose a temporary non-application of the Schengen rules. Today, Schengen is in danger. But we should not allow our dreams and milestones of European identity to be endangered. We should stick to who we are and make the others believe in our plan for Europe and the world.

Crises can be solved only through integration and cooperation. Integration makes progress possible, therefore we need more integration in Europe, not less. Europe’s history is above all a history of cooperation, diplomacy, technological and human success, not of wars and conflicts. Our democracies are not perfect. They do not always function well. However, it is democracy that makes us strong, free and humane. Nations should not be strong because of their armies of soldiers, but because of their armies of well educated people. Nations should be strong not with military capabilities, but by talent and soft power. The achievements of a country should not be measured by increasing their territory, but by the success of its people. We need an international order in which everyone is important and everyone can and must contribute to peace and stability. We need countries and leaders who believe that differences can be resolved peacefully and only through dialogue and cooperation.

We live in an integrated world. Technologies, social media, the will of the people to live better, go beyond our borders. No one is immune from terrorism, global warming, economic or energy problems. As Benjamin Franklin rightly said: “Either we stand together, or we hang alone”.
 
In critical time we should follow our ideas, not our fears. We should resolve our differences together and in a peaceful way. We already interdepend a lot. Let us turn these interdependencies into opportunities.    

 Dear friends,

No nation, regardless of its political will and military might, can manage on its own. Cooperation is no longer a matter of choice, but of necessity. The Founding fathers of the European Union made history. But if you stop making history, somebody else will. We should continue making history with our journey for a more integrated, peaceful, human and sustainable world order.

Thank you!