Ladies and Gentlemen,

I thank the Rector of Taras Shevchenko University for agreeing that his famous University host the European Union's celebration of what can be regarded as a truly historic event – the signature, fifty years ago, of the Treaties of Rome. The Treaties created the European Economic Community which was the forerunner of the European Union. They also created the European Atomic Energy Community that was set up to establish the conditions for the development of nuclear energy in Europe.

There is no need to explain to a Ukrainian audience the horrors of war – especially the Second World War.

It was that event – those horrors – that led many people after 1945 to reflect on whether the nations of Europe could not find a better way of solving their problems.

Many of them, like my father, were simple citizens who had spent nearly six years of their lives in combat. Some were far sighted statesmen who were in the position to do something to change the world they lived in.

As is well known the first move towards the unification of Europe was the creation in 1950 of the European Coal and Steel Community. Why coal and steel? Well, in those days they were the main raw materials for making war (now it is satellites and microchips). It was therefore felt that putting these resources under the control of a single high authority would make it more difficult for them to be used for national – warlike – purposes. Interestingly, the declaration on 9 May 1950 of Robert Schuman, the then Foreign Minister of France, makes it very clear that the purpose of creating the Coal and Steel Community was not economic but political – to promote peace in Europe.

Then came the event we are now celebrating – the signature on 25 March 1957 of the Treaty of Rome creating the European Economic Community – still, you will note, an economic enterprise but with a political aim to create an "ever closer union" of states. But as Jean Monnet, one of united Europe's founding fathers, said: "we are not making coalitions of states, we are uniting people".

The Treaty of Rome was signed by six countries: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands. Its basic aim was to deal with the questions of trade and agriculture. It is worth noting that the Treaty of Rome contains virtually no reference to external relations (about which the German Ambassador will speak). The European Community was not necessarily inward looking, as some have criticised it, but it certainly aimed to take care of its own business.

The first major move by the European Community to address the outside world was its development policy towards first Africa, then the Caribbean and the Pacific (basically the former colonies of France and UK), then the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean, South East Asia, the Indian Sub-Continent, Latin America (especially after the accession of Spain and Portugal). It is worth noting that the European Union and its Member States are now the largest providers (with over 60%) of development aid in the world. The EU is at the same time the largest trading bloc in the world (and is Ukraine's larges trading partner).

During all this period the European Community began to develop some relations with the outside world, notably by the creation of what was known as Political Co-operation, a forerunner of the Common Foreign and Security Policy and indeed the Common Defence and Security Policy.

During, notably, the Commission Presidency of Jacques Delors from 1985-95 the European Union, as it became, made great progress.

For example the Commission made proposals to complete the internal market involving over 200 separate pieces of legislation. It is worth noting that the Treaty of Rome should in fact have completed the single market but member States and sectoral lobbies became increasingly ingenious in finding ways to circumvent the requirements. Today we have the four freedoms of movement: goods, services, capital and people. But even now these freedoms are not complete.

At the same time the European Commission determined that the EU should not be just for businessmen and politicians (however important they are). The Commission therefore introduced the notion of "economic cohesion" to ensure that the various regions of the European countries would achieve, as far as possible, the same standard of living as the most prosperous. Thus society as a whole would see the benefit of the evolution of the European Union. The regional funds have played a very significant role in the development of a number of Member States.

Equally the Commission developed possibilities for people-to-people contacts such as Socrates/Leonardo and Erasmus. These have allowed over one million European Union students to make part of their studies in other EU countries. This is a formidable instrument for promoting international understanding and a sense of community among people of different nationalities. Some of these programmes are being gradually opened to Ukrainian students.

Another major development was the role of the European Union in what we call "Justice, Freedom and Security". This concerns matters that were for many years the responsibility of national governments: migration, asylum, trafficking in drugs, people, weapons, money laundering, terrorism, organised crime. But by their very nature these problems do not respect national frontiers. Thus it was a great step forward to treat them at an EU level. One consequence of this is that these subjects also form an essential part of our relations with our partners such as Ukraine.

It was also in this period that the foundations were laid for the creation of the Euro – a common currency for now twelve, soon to be thirteen of the Member States. Others will no doubt follow. Many people regretted – and some still regret – the disappearance of their national currencies. But the advantages to businesses and to travellers are significant and the Euro has come to rival the Dollar in many areas of international finance.

Very recently the EU has begun – belatedly, some might say – to take up the twin challenges of energy and the environment in an integrated approach to climate and energy policy. These matters were discussed at the recent European Summit and the Energy Policy for Europe was adopted. One of the points it stresses is the need to develop a common approach to external energy policy.

One criticism that is constantly levelled at the European Union is its lack of democratic legitimacy – the so-called "democratic deficit".

It is possible to argue that, starting in 1979, the European Parliament is elected by universal suffrage, the Council of Ministers is composed of representatives of governments elected by the voters of each Member State and the Commission is composed of Commissioners nominated by democratically elected governments and approved by the European Parliament. All of this is true but it does not change the fact that the perception of the average European citizen is that "Brussels" is remote and unaccountable. Many citizens fear that Europe will continue to grow without limitations, not only in terms of the number of Member States but also in terms of the areas of life for which it will be responsible. This is one reason why the referendum in France and Netherlands failed to ratify the European Constitution. This Constitution aims to make the European Union more efficient (the methods used when there were six Member States are no longer appropriate for twenty-seven Member States). Furthermore the EU sought through the Constitution to strengthen its presence in world affairs by having a permanent President (instead of the rotating six months Presidency), a Foreign Minister (instead of the responsibility for external relations being divided between the Commission and the Secretary General / High Representative) and, finally, an EU diplomatic service (the precise form of which has yet to be decided but which would presumably build on the 130 Delegations of the European Commission around the world).

Of course the external and the internal aspects of the EU have, with its twin processes of broadening and deepening, become increasingly intertwined.

One of the most striking aspects of the European Union has been the desire of twenty-one states to join the original six members and there are more that are seeking entry. Initially the extra Members came from the European Free Trade Area. However, increasingly the new Member States have been those which threw off military dictatorships and, more recently, those that emerged either from the Soviet Union (such as the Baltic States) or from the Warsaw Pact.

The European Union exists to promote prosperity, stability and security. It is remarkable that as countries reach the stage where they are free to choose for themselves they choose to become part of this Union, despite its imperfections. I would argue that the enlargements of 2004 and 2007 are among the most important achievements of the EU.

So the question must be asked: what does this anniversary mean for Ukraine?

This is not an easy question to answer, though everyone tries to get me to do so.

Ukraine, like many countries that are now members of the European Union, looks at the EU as a place in which to anchor its future. Its European aspirations are known to and acknowledged by the EU. Many Ukrainians regret the lack of a signal from the EU. I would argue that signals have been given – they may not be as loud and as clear as some would wish. But they are there. Everything that the EU does in its relations with Ukraine aims at bringing it closer to the European Union. Whether it is market economy status, support for membership of the WTO, willingness to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement, the conclusion of a visa facilitation agreement, co-operation in the field of energy, the new enhanced agreement the negotiations of which started on 5 March, increased allocations under TACIS and the ENPI, the Action Plan – all of this and much more (all contained in the European Neighbourhood Policy) has but one goal – to integrate Ukraine progressively into the European Union space and to confirm Ukraine's position as an important member of the European family.

None of this prejudges what will be the final relationship between us. But this is one of the characteristics of the EU. It has always been a road with many turnings but also a road with no fixed end.

The founding fathers of a united Europe who, fifty years ago, signed the Treaty of Rome may have been far sighted enough to realise where their common endeavour would have reached in 2007 though I doubt it. In any case I suspect they would have been few in number. For most of us lesser mortals it has to be enough that we know and believe that we are travelling in the right direction.

More information about the 50^th anniversary can be found here: