• About Us
    • Mission Statement
    • Statutes
    • Board
    • Member
      • Corporate
      • Personal
    • Management
    • Become a Member
  • Programme
    • CEO Roundtable
    • Panel discussions and webinars
    • Cooperations
    • Stammtisch & Members’ talk
    • Lectures
    • Studies
  • Working Groups
    • Powering Europe: Competitive Energy Transition
    • Europe Future-Ready: Globally Competitive & Innovative capable
  • Young Leaders Advocacy Network
    • Mentoring Programme
    • Advocacy Seminars
    • Advocacy Webinars
    • Young Leaders Alumni
    • Young Leaders Voices
    • Rome Manifesto
      • The Manifesto
      • The Story behind the Manifesto
      • Partner Organisations
  • Events
    • Past events
  • DE
  • EN
  • DE
United Europe
United Europe
  • About Us
    • Mission Statement
    • Statutes
    • Board
    • Member
      • Corporate
      • Personal
    • Management
    • Become a Member
  • Programme
    • CEO Roundtable
    • Panel discussions and webinars
    • Cooperations
    • Stammtisch & Members’ talk
    • Lectures
    • Studies
  • Working Groups
    • Powering Europe: Competitive Energy Transition
    • Europe Future-Ready: Globally Competitive & Innovative capable
  • Young Leaders Advocacy Network
    • Mentoring Programme
    • Advocacy Seminars
    • Advocacy Webinars
    • Young Leaders Alumni
    • Young Leaders Voices
    • Rome Manifesto
      • The Manifesto
      • The Story behind the Manifesto
      • Partner Organisations
  • Events
    • Past events
  • DE
Join
  • News

Welcome note of Günther H. Oettinger, new President of United Europe

  • March 18, 2020
Günther H. Oettinger, @European Commission
Günther H. Oettinger, ©European Commission

I was recently appointed president of United Europe and am very pleased to take over this office as successor to Chancellor Schüssel. My thanks go to Wolfgang Schüssel for his valuable work over the past years. I hope that he will continue to provide us with his importance guidance in the future.
My original intention with this address was to share with you my plans for United Europe, but the extraordinary situation which we now find ourselves in demands other measures – which is why I am now making the following request of you: Here in Europe, we must respond to the coronavirus pandemic with determination and solidarity.

Now is not the time for populists and nationalists. Those voices have fallen silent as recent events have unfolded – unsurprising, as those groups are not at all capable of objective policy-making or crisis management.

Günther Oettinger,
©European Commission

In contrast, the EU is taking the right steps. Just a few examples: The European Commission is relaxing its debt limits for Member States. The European fiscal rules are to be suspended for a transitional period. And the EU is pushing to keep goods and essential services flowing in our single market. This is the only way to prevent a lack of medical equipment or food.
The fact that, at the beginning of the pandemic, no EU country responded to Italy’s request to supply protective equipment was a huge mistake. Heavily affected countries like Italy and Spain need our solidarity. A pan-European solution must be found – integration must be reinforced and deepened, and we must put a stop to individual countries acting only in their own self-interest.
In times of crisis, the constitution of a society becomes apparent. The answer to all these crises can only be a united Europe in which the Member States show solidarity.
The aftermath of this pandemic will change the world forever. We will all be affected and will have to make cutbacks in many areas. There will be much to rebuild. A retreat into “national egocentrism” is not the solution. The only way to overcome this challenge is by working together; in the end, it also offers us an opportunity.
We must work towards deeper integration of the European Union in order to be better prepared for crises in the future. Now is the time for European solidarity. Short-term restrictions on mobility and freedom of travel must not lead to the death of the European idea. On the contrary, they show us what we all have to gain from a united Europe. This is why the idea of United Europe is more topical than ever. Let us work together and invest all our strength for a Europe that is united, competitive and secure in the face of crisis.

Günther H. Oettinger
President of United Europe e.V., EU Commissioner 2010-2019

 

Wolfgang Schüssel

It was an honour and a pleasure for me to help shape the destiny of United Europe for seven years. The idea was born during an informal discussion with JG and some friends – we felt it was not enough to complain about the state of Europe. It was high time to encourage like-minded people from business and society to stand up and fight publicly for the idea of European unification.
A lot has happened since then. In numerous Young Professionals seminars, hundreds of future managers were motivated, and an exciting vision of the future was developed in the “Rome Manifesto”. In a Handelsblatt cooperation (series of articles and a book), 30 high-ranking CEOs and opinion leaders called for “Europe can do better”. Digitisation, trade opening, a shift towards Africa, the EU’s security and defence capability, and the completion of the internal market were further focal points in well-attended and intellectually highly stimulating forums. A defeat of United Europe is also to be admitted: despite the manifold efforts of our friends MJ and PM, “Brexit”, the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the Union, will take place on 31 January 2020. We should do all we can to ensure that a viable partnership agreement is reached after the one-year transitional period.
My farewell melancholy is strongly dampened by my successor – Günther Oettinger was unanimously elected President of UE at the last General Assembly. Thus the continuity of United Europe’s work is ensured and strong new impulses can be expected. My thanks go to all members and sponsors as well as to the board and the two managing directors Rieke Schües and Sabine Sasse.

Dr. Wolfgang Schüssel
President United Europe (2013-2019), Federal Chancellor of Austria (2000-2007)

  • share 
  • share 
  • share 
  • share 
  • save 
  • share 
  • share 
  • email 

p >=1 && c == 0

Other News
  • United Europe’s Panel Discussion: Economic Shifts & Geopolitical Pressures: How is Europe’s New Leadership Team Preparing for the Future?
    • December 19, 2024
  • SAVE THE DATE: Virtual Debrief I The Outcome of the German Federal Election 2025: Consequences for Europe
    • March 10, 2025
  • ***Call for Application*** – Young Leaders Advocacy Seminar in Berlin “Europe’s Workforce Crisis: Challenges & Solutions
    • September 6, 2024
„There is a need for joint efforts to ensure that the crisis of confidence does not become an institutional crisis and that the qualification crisis does not become a labor market crisis.“

Matthias Hartmann
CEO IBM Germany

More prominent opinions
Search
Trending Posts
  • ***Call for Applications*** – Young Leaders Advocacy Seminar in Vienna “2024 Was A Defining Election Year – What’s Next For Europe?”
    • March 11, 2025
  • Review: The Europe Panel 2025 – An official side event of the Munich Security Conference
    • March 8, 2025
  • SAVE THE DATE: Virtual Debrief I The Outcome of the German Federal Election 2025: Consequences for Europe
    • March 10, 2025
  • Review: Young Leaders Advocacy Seminar in Vienna “2024 Was A Decisive Election Year: What’s Next For Europe?” I Part 1
    • May 26, 2025
  • Review: Young Leaders Advocacy Seminar in Vienna “2024 Was A Decisive Election Year: What’s Next For Europe?” I Part 2
    • June 22, 2025
  • About Us
    • Mission Statement
    • Statutes
    • Board
    • Member
    • Management
    • Become a Member
  • Programme
    • CEO Roundtable
    • Panel discussions and webinars
    • Cooperations
    • Stammtisch & Members’ talk
    • Lectures
    • Studies
  • Working Groups
    • Powering Europe: Competitive Energy Transition
    • Europe Future-Ready: Globally Competitive & Innovative capable
  • Young Leaders Advocacy Network
    • Mentoring Programme
    • Advocacy Seminars
    • Advocacy Webinars
    • Young Leaders Alumni
    • Young Leaders Voices
    • Rome Manifesto
  • Events
    • Past events
  • DE
  • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Imprint
© United Europe e. V.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.

Manage Cookie Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Vorlieben
Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff ist für den rechtmäßigen Zweck der Speicherung von Präferenzen erforderlich, die nicht vom Abonnenten oder Benutzer angefordert wurden.
Statistics
Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff, der ausschließlich zu statistischen Zwecken erfolgt. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}
X