Ladies and gentlemen,

Dominic and I just had a second constructive meeting.

I agree with what Dominic said last week – we must bring new energy into these negotiations.

And we will need to sustain this energy over the coming weeks in order to reach an agreement.

We both want to conclude in October, with a deal.

We have two main challenges.                                                                          

1. First, we need to finalise the outstanding issues of the Withdrawal Agreement, including a legally operative backstop for Ireland and Northern Ireland.
2. Second, we need to agree on a political declaration on our future relationship.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let me focus first on the future relationship.

Last Friday, I made some initial comments on the UK’s White Paper.

This week confirmed that the UK proposals on security mark a real step forward:

The UK has provided new guarantees on the protection of fundamental rights and the uniform application of law:

• The White Paper commits the UK to membership of the European Convention on Human Rights.
• It recognises the European Court of Justice as the only arbiter of EU law.

These are important safeguards. They enlarge the possibilities of what we can do together on internal security, in particular on data exchange.

Based on the protection of personal data, and based on reciprocity, the EU and the UK can explore the modalities for close cooperation on the following points:

• the exchange of DNA, fingerprints, and vehicle registration information (so called “Prüm”),
• the exchange of Passenger Name Records to better track and identify individuals involved in terrorism and crime,
• swift and effective extradition, based on the procedural rights for suspects.

Furthermore, I am particularly pleased with the progress in our talks on foreign policy and external security.

• We have a shared understanding on how to organise our future close cooperation, including on sanctions, defence capabilities and crisis management. The UK is a member of the UN Security Council, and an important player in security and defence. Our cooperation is even more important in today’s geo-political context.
• I recall that this EU-UK cooperation in defence will be in addition to what we already do in NATO, and to bilateral agreements between the UK and certain Member States.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In contrast, on our future economic relationship, it comes as no surprise that finding common ground between the EU27 and the UK is more difficult.

But we have agreed already on a common denominator: we both want an ambitious Free Trade Agreement.

In March, EU leaders proposed an unprecedented Free Trade Agreement.

Another area of convergence between the EU and the UK is the need for ambitious customs arrangements.

We are also both committed to a level playing field between our economies.

But, to be frank, we are not at the end of the road yet.

There are major issues to be discussed and questions to be answered.

We share a clear understanding on a core principle that will define our future economic relationship: the UK and the EU will both preserve the autonomy of their decision-making.

Both will preserve their regulatory autonomy.

The UK wants to take back control of its money, law, and borders, as Dominic said in an article this morning.

We will respect that.

But the EU also wants to keep control of its money, law, and borders.

The UK should respect that.

So, we share an objective in that regard.

A clear example of what this means concerns our future relationship in financial services.

•  We discussed financial services this week and agreed that future market access will be governed by autonomous decisions on both sides.
•  We recognised the need for this autonomy, not only at the time of granting equivalence decisions, but also at the time of withdrawing such decisions.
•  And we agreed to have close regulatory cooperation, which will also have to respect the autonomy of both parties.

Maintaining control of our money, law, and borders also applies to the EU’s customs policy.

• The EU cannot – and will not – delegate the application of its customs policy and rules, VAT and excise duty collection to a non-member, who would not be subject to the EU’s governance structures.
• Any customs arrangements or customs union – and I have always said that the EU is open to a customs union – must respect this principle.
• In any case, a customs union, which would help to reduce friction at the border, would come with our Common Commercial Policy for goods.
• President Juncker’s visit to Washington yesterday shows the importance of our Common Commercial Policy. It shows that we are stronger together.
• Any customs arrangement will also have to be workable and must protect EU and national revenue, without imposing additional costs on businesses and customs authorities.

This is the framework within which we will work with the UK over the coming weeks.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This week, these customs discussions have also been the backdrop to the backstop.

We have a clear agreement between the EU and the UK that the Withdrawal Agreement must contain an all-weather insurance policy. We share the goal of avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland.

Let me recall why.

Because, as we agreed in December, the absence of a hard border has to be guaranteed no matter what the future relationship will be.

Of course, we have always said that a better solution in the future EU-UK relationship could replace the backstop.

This explains the “unless and until” provision of the backstop to which the UK has agreed.

Continued uncertainty on this issue after the UK’s withdrawal would be unacceptable for Ireland, for Northern Ireland, for the UK as a whole, and obviously for the EU27.

Ladies and gentlemen,

We also had agreed in March on the scope of the issues to be solved in the backstop.

This week, we focused on the customs element of the backstop.

The UK wants this to be UK-wide.

As I said last week, we have no objection in principle to this.

But we have doubts that this can be done without putting at risk the integrity of our Customs Union, our Common Commercial Policy, our regulatory policy, and our fiscal revenue.

We have had an open and frank – and therefore useful – discussion with Dominic and his team on these issues.

I think that the UK has understood our concerns and respects our principles.

And the UK has promised to come back to us with concrete proposals on how to address our concerns.

Both teams will reflect on this in the coming weeks. The next time we meet will be mid-August. We must advance and agree on a legally operative backstop solution to conclude the Withdrawal Agreement.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Before giving the floor to Dominic and taking questions, let me just add one more point.

I have been focusing on all the open issues and the work that we have ahead of us over the next few weeks to conclude the Withdrawal Agreement.

Let’s keep in mind that we have already agreed on a large part of this Withdrawal Agreement – more or less 80%.

This includes the very important issue of citizens’ rights, which has been our priority since the beginning of this negotiation, as well as the priority of the European Parliament. It continues to be our priority.

But the job does not stop here. We will also have to work on making sure that citizens can easily avail themselves of the rights that will be guaranteed in the Withdrawal Agreement.

We are working with the Home Office as well as with the Member States on this point.

Thank you for your attention.

Dernier lancement spatial sous la commission Juncker: 26 satellites Galileo désormais en orbite

Hier, quatre satellites Galileo additionnels ont été mis en orbite depuis le port de lancement européen, en Guyane française, sur le lanceur européen Ariane-5. Avec une constellation de 26 satellites, le système de navigation satellitaire mondial de l’UE fournira un signal plus précis pour toute une gamme de services. Le vice-président de la Commission Maroš Šefčovič a déclaré:«C’est une nouvelle étape sur la voie de la pleine capacité opérationnelle de Galileo en 2020! L’espace est en train de devenir une nouvelle frontière économique car il est lié de façon vitale à un nombre croissant de secteurs et entraîne leur modernisation profonde. En fait, 10 % du PIB de l’UE dépend de services en rapport avec l’espace. Nous devons donc faire en sorte que l’Europe parvienne au leadership mondial et à l’autonomie stratégique.» Elżbieta Bieńkowska, la commissaire pour le marché intérieur, l’industrie, l’entrepreneuriat et les PME, qui conduisait la délégation de la Commission européenne à Kourou (Guyane française), a déclaré: «Nous pouvons être très fiers du succès de nos activités spatiales. L’Europe est devenue une véritable puissance spatiale. Depuis le début de mon mandat, j’ai eu des objectifs clairs: développer l’infrastructure en temps voulu et dans les limites du budget, livrer les premiers services et assurer leur essor rapide. Aujourd’hui, nous pouvons le dire: nous l’avons fait. Mais les efforts et l’investissement devront se poursuivre dans le cadre du nouveau programme spatial de l’UE.»Galileo fournit des services de positionnement et de mesure du temps à environ 400 millions d’utilisateurs depuis décembre 2016. Le lancement d’hier rapproche la constellation de sa finalisation, en 2020, année où Galileo atteindra sa pleine capacité opérationnelle. Avec une précision record de 20 cm, à terme, Galileo sera le système de navigation satellitaire le plus précis au monde. Pour le prochain budget à long terme de l’UE couvrant la période 2021-2027, la Commission a proposé de regrouper toutes les activités spatiales existantes et futures sous un seul programme spatial de l’UE, doté d’un budget de 16 milliards d’euros. Davantage d’informations sur le lancement sont disponibles dans un communiqué de presse. (Pour plus d’informations: Ricardo Cardoso – Tél.: +32 229 80100, Lucia Caudet – Tél.: +32 229 56182; Maud Noyon – Tél.: +32 229 80379, Victoria von Hammerstein – Tél.: +32 229 55040)

European solidarity on Energy: Better integration of the Iberian Peninsula into the EU energy market

This Friday, the Prime Minister of Portugal António Costa, the President of France Emmanuel Macron and the President of the government of Spain Pedro Sanchez will meet in Lisbon to strengthen their regional cooperation in the framework of the Energy Union. On behalf of Commission President Juncker, Climate Action and Energy Commission Miguel Arias Cañete will represent the European Commission. At the Lisbon Summit, leaders will take stock of the important progress achieved in better integrating the Iberian Peninsula into the internal energy market and will formally agree on ways to strengthen the regional cooperation between Spain, France and Portugal. Underlining the EU’s willingness to complete the Energy Union and fulfil its commitments under the Paris agreement, leaders will sign the Lisbon Declaration that clearly sets out the way forward. It builds on the Madrid Declaration from March 2015 which launched the integration process and set up a High Level Group chaired by the Commission to steer progress. Since the Juncker Commission took office, the integration of the Iberian Peninsula into the internal energy market has been a priority. By supporting the construction of the necessary infrastructure, the EU’s goal is to end the energy isolation of this part of Europe, whilst improving energy security, giving consumers more choice, and spurring economic growth and jobs. These interconnections are also essential for renewable energy sources to thrive and make Europe world number one in renewable energy. The summit is an opportunity to examine the work and progress on strengthening investment on energy interconnections undertaken by the Juncker Commission. Europe by Satellite will transmit from the summit including a press conference scheduled at 19:00 CET. Find more information on the Commission’s website. (For more information: Ricardo Cardoso – Tel.: +32 229 80100; Nicole Bockstaller – Tel.: +32 229 52589)

State aid: Commission approves €120 million public support for broadband network project in the region of Oberösterreich in Austria
The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a regional broadband scheme in the Oberösterreich region in Austria, aimed at promoting the deployment of a comprehensive next generation access network complemented by a next generation backbone/backhaul-network. The objective is to guarantee broadband internet access speeds of at least 30 megabits per second (Mbps) in the first stages and progressively up to at least 100 Mbps for both download and upload. These access speeds can be upgraded to 1000 Mbps per second by 2033. The regional public authorities will be provided with a maximum State aid amount of €120 million, which they will use to deploy and manage the network through an in-house company. The new network will be deployed in areas of the country where no equivalent broadband infrastructure is in place or planned in the near future. Access to the network will be provided to third party network operators and service providers on equal and non-discriminatory terms. The scheme conforms with the Digital Agenda for Europe and the 2025 objectives for high speed internet connections set out in the Commission’s Communication on a Gigabit Society. The Commission assessed the measure under its2013 Broadband Guidelines and concluded that the measure is in line with EU State aid rules because the positive effects of the scheme on competition in the Austrian broadband market outweigh any potential negative effects brought about by the aid. More information will be available, once potential confidentiality issues have been resolved, on the Commission’s competition website, in the State Aid Register under the case number SA.48325. (For more information: Ricardo Cardoso – Tel.: +32 229 80100; Giulia Astuti – +32 229 55344)

Aides d’État: la Commission autorise l’aide française en faveur de l’installation pilote de production d’énergie hydrolienne de Raz Blanchard

La Commission européenne a considéré qu’un projet français visant à promouvoir la production d’électricité à partir d’énergie hydrolienne était compatible avec les règles de l’UE en matière d’aides d’État. Le projet concerne Normandie Hydro, une installation pilote de production d’électricité à partir d’énergie hydrolienne située dans la zone du Raz Blanchard, à l’ouest de la péninsule du Cotentin, au niveau de la Manche. La centrale pilote se composera de sept hydroliennes, dotées d’une capacité de production électrique de 14 mégawatts. L’aide publique a pour objectif de tester cette nouvelle technologie et de vérifier le potentiel d’énergie hydrolienne en France avant de déployer cette technologie à plus grande échelle. La Commission a apprécié le régime d’aides sur la base de ses lignes directrices de 2014 concernant les aides d’État à la protection de l’environnement et à l’énergie, qui autorisent les États membres à soutenir les énergies renouvelables, sous réserve de certaines conditions. La Commission a conclu que le projet participera aux objectifs énergétiques et climatiques de l’UE sans fausser indûment la concurrence sur le marché unique. Margrethe Vestager, commissaire chargée de la politique de concurrence, a fait la déclaration suivante: «L’énergie hydrolienne est l’une des technologies pouvant contribuer à la transition vers un approvisionnement énergétique respectueux du climat en Europe. Le projet français avalisé aujourd’hui aidera à mettre en avant la technologie hydrolienne, tout en limitant les distorsions de concurrence». Un communiqué de presse complet est disponible en ligne en FR, EN et DE. (Pour plus d’informations: Ricardo Cardoso – Tel.: +32 229 80100; Giulia Astuti – +32 229 55344)