Cardinal Marx congratulates Herman Van Rompuy on being awarded the Charlemagne Prize

COMECE Press 29/05/2014

‘An exemplary passion for Europe’

The President of the German Bishops' Conference and President of COMECE, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, has congratulated the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy on being awarded this year's Charlemagne Prize. Mr Van Rompuy received the Charlemagne Prize in Aachen today.

In a letter to Mr Van Rompuy, Cardinal Marx called the winner of the 2014 Charlemagne Prize as a true mediator of the European Union : "Your commitment to the Union and your passion for Europe are exemplary and encourage in particular young people to participate in the construction of Europe. With your strong integrative power, you motivate us over and over again in keeping up our commitment to Europe, "said Cardinal Marx. Wherever Mr. Van Rompuy comes across "Europe fatigue," he convinces through words and deeds for Europe.

Cardinal Marx stressed in his congratulations the commitment of the President of the European Council to resolving international conflicts. " Europe has a responsibility in the world. Therefore, I support your claim that conflicts in neighbouring regions of the European Union or conflicts in other trouble spots of the world should always be perceived as a pan-European task . They require European solidarity with the international community. I want to personally support this particular claim. "

Europe is a reality and not just a vision, according to Cardinal Marx : "Nevertheless, every day we must continue building this Europe. To this you have committed yourself tirelessly". The German Bishops' Conference and COMECE will continue supporting President Van Rompuy to achieve this aim.


Contact: Johanna Touzel, COMECE Spokesperson and Press Officer

johanna.touzel@comece.eu Tel+32 (0)2 235 05 15

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Press conference EU Religious leaders

12 July 2012



Intergenerational Solidarity was at the heart of this year’s annual summit meeting of European Faith leaders with the Presidents of the EU Institutions. This was the eighth such high-level meeting which took place at the invitation of President José Manuel Barroso and was co-chaired by Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council and László Surján, Vice-President of the European Parliament. Read more

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Van Rompuy: S&P rate cut will not affect euro rescue fund

Uploaded by telegraphtv on Jan 17, 2012
Standard & Poor's downgrade of Europe's bailout fund will have no impact on the fund's capacity, the president of the European Council, says Herman Van Rompuy.

European leaders reach deal on bank recapitalisation

WORLD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2011

By KARL STAGNO-NAVARRA

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi arriving for tonights meeting in Brussels

Scheme requires big banks to have 9% of capital by June as a one-off stabilisation measure.

European Union leaders have reached agreement on a plan to recapitalise Europe's biggest banks, in a bid to contain the effects of any further shocks in the eurozone.

The plan entails that big European banks will be required to have “9% of the highest quality capital” by June 2012, measured against assets, EU President Herman Von Rompuy said, adding that the banks should raise capital from the private-sector where possible.

However, where that proves impossible, member states will be obliged to provide capital in exchange for equity.

The eurozone's rescue fund, now known to be the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), could be used as a last resort.

In a statement issued by EU leaders at the end of their meeting, it was said that guarantees were needed for banks' liabilities to ensure that they could obtain medium-term funding.

They have asked the European Commission to work with the European Banking Authority, the European Investment Bank and the European Central Bank to explore options for a co-ordinated EU approach.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who currently heads the EU’s rotating presidency, said that the plan was adopted “after a short, heated debate” among the 27 leaders, before the eurozone leaders began their own meeting.

“An emotional element during the debate was the fact that this is not a permanent element,” Tusk said, referring to the “exceptional circumstances” that had made such a move necessary. “This will not be a permanent solution for the future.”

Although neither Tusk nor Van Rompuy gave a figure for therecapitalisation needs of EU banks, the total is expected to be around €109 billion.

Regarding the prospects for a comprehensive crisis response beingfinalised by eurozone leaders tonight, Tusk said: “I think we are very close to a full political agreement. However, there are some important details that might require some more debate. We need to be patient.”

But Tusk also stressed that the bank recapitalisation plan was part of the overall crisis response. “The recapitalisation of banks will work only when the euro area approves other elements that are currently being debated,” he said. “The bank recapitalisation without the remaining elements, without the firewall, wouldn't have any chance of success.”

Tusk said that Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi , had submitted a letter to the group to inform them of his government's austerity measures. Tusk said that the letter included a “detailed work plan” from the government and was “very well received”.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said: “We've made good progress on the bank recapitalisation, it wasn't watered down. But it will only go ahead when the other parts of the full package go ahead and further progress needs to be made tonight.”

Cameron was one of the leaders of non-eurozone countries who had insisted on a full Council meeting before the summit of eurozoneleaders.

Leaders of the 17 eurozone countries – including Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi - are meanwhile holding a separate meeting tonight to try to agree ways to increase the firepower of the eurozone rescue fund and cut the size of Greece's debt as part of a package of measures to tackle the eurozone crisis.

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Sarkzoy, Merkel invite Van Rompuy to head eurozone

EU president Herman Van Rompuy has been asked to chair a body of eurozone leaders (AFP/File, Georges Gobet)


(AFP) – 16 hours ago

PARIS — France's President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel sent a joint letter Wednesday to EU president Herman Van Rompuy inviting him to chair a body of eurozone leaders.

The pair said they hope to strengthen coordinated financial planning within the 17-nation single currency bloc in the face of the current sovereign debt crisis and want the former Belgian prime minister on board.

"The euro is the foundation of our economic success and the symbol of the political unification of our continent," the zone's two most powerful leaders said, in a joint statement drawn up after they held talks on Tuesday.

"France and Germany propose to reinforce once more the governance of the eurozone within the framework of existing treaties," they wrote, proposing that eurozone leaders elect a president for a two-and-a-half year mandate.

"We have expressed our hope that you could assume this role," they added.

Eurozone finance ministers already meet regularly in what is known as the Eurogroup, and which is chaired by Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker.

European financial markets and the euro exchange rate have been gripped by uncertainty as one eurozone member after another has begun to struggle to cope with mounting government debt, threatening the unification project.

Markets had looked to Merkel and Sarkozy's Paris summit for reassurance, and many observers had hoped that they would endorse the idea of issuing a common "eurobond" to pool member states' debts.

But the pair stopped short of a measure that would have angered German taxpayers by giving them a greater share of the burden of supporting weaker economies like Greece, calling instead for tougher fiscal discipline.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso nevertheless called Tuesday's meeting an "important political contribution by the leaders of the two largest euro area economies."


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Video: Van Rompuy: Opening Summit EUX.TV

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