EuCET conf: the EU must be built on a community of sovereign nation-states

The European Union should be a community built on the cooperation of sovereign nation states, member organisations of the European Union Civil Cooperation Council (EuCET) said in a closing statement following a two-day conference on Saturday.

The closing statement called for the creation of an EU that takes member states’ historical traditions, economic strength and national interests into consideration while striving for the broadest possible cooperation.

In the statement, the EuCET rejected what they called the current EU leadership’s efforts to centralise the bloc as well as “ideologies that question Europe’s historical heritage and Judeo-Christian roots”.

The EuCET wants a strong Europe in which the decisions of the European Council cannot be overruled by lower-level resolutions, the statement said, and called for strengthening the institution of the European citizens’ initiative.

The council also expressed its support for local economies, the protection of the EU’s borders, stopping illegal immigration and environmental protection.

As regards foreign policy, the EuCET voiced its respect for the customs, traditions and political systems of other countries, saying it did not want to interfere in them through “the export of democracy”