9377/03 (Presse 137)

PROVISIONAL VERSION TO BE COMPLETED

GENERAL AFFAIRS AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS *

2508th Council meeting

- GENERAL AFFAIRS -

Brussels, 19 May 2003

President : Mr Giorgos PAPANDREOU Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic

* The 2509th session on External Relations is the subject of a separate press release (doc. 9379/03 Presse 138)

Internet: http://ue.eu.int/ E-mail: [email protected]

For further information call 32 2 285 60 83 – 32 2 285 81 11 9377/03 (Presse 137) 1 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

CONTENTS 1

PARTICIPANTS...... 3

ITEMS DEBATED

PROGRESS OF WORK IN OTHER COUNCIL CONFIGURATIONS...... 5 PREPARATION OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL...... 6 REFORM OF THE STAFF REGULATIONS ...... 7

ITEMS APPROVED WITHOUT DEBATE

– TO BE COMPLETED ON WEDNESDAY 21.05.2003...... I

1 ? Where declarations, conclusions or resolutions have been formally adopted by the Council, this is indicated in the heading for the item concerned and the text is placed between quotation marks. ? The documents whose references are given in the text are available on the Council's Internet site http://ue.eu.int. ? Acts adopted with statements for the Council minutes which may be released to the public are indicated by an asterisk; these statements are available on the above mentioned Council Internet site or may be obtained from the Press Office.

9377/03 (Presse 137) 2 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

PARTICIPANTS The Governments of the Member States and the European Commission were represented as follows:

Belgium : Mr Jan DE BOCK Ambassador, Permanent Representative Denmark : State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr Carsten SØNDERGAARD Germany : Mr Wilhelm SCHÖNFELDER Ambassador, Permanent Representative Greece : Mr Giorgos PAPANDREOU Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Anastasios GIANNITSIS Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Spain : Ms Ana PALACIO VALLELERSUNDI Minister for Foreign Affairs France : Mr Dominique de VILLEPIN Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms Noëlle LENOIR Minister attached to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, with responsibility for European Affairs Ireland : Mr Brian COWEN Minister for Foreign Affairs Italy : Mr Minister for Foreign Affairs Luxembourg : Ms Lydie POLFER Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Netherlands : Mr Jaap de HOOP SCHEFFER Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Atzo NICOLAI State Secretary for European Affairs Austria : Ms Benita FERRERO-WALDNER Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Portugal : Mr António MARTINS da CRUZ Minister for Foreign Affairs and Portuguese Communities Abroad Finland : Mr Erkki TUOMIOJA Minister for Foreign Affairs Sweden : Ms Anna LINDH Minister for Foreign Affairs United Kingdom : Mr Denis MACSHANE Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office

* * *

Commission : Mr Neil KINNOCK Vice-President

9377/03 (Presse 137) 3 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

The Governments of the Acceding States were represented as follows:

Czech Republic : Mr Cyril SVOBODA Minister for Foreign Affairs Estonia : Ms Kriistina OJULAND Minister for Foreign Affairs Cyprus : Mr George IACOVOU Minister for Foreign Affairs Latvia : ms Minister for Foreign Affairs Lithuania : Mr Antanas VALIONIS Minister for Foreign Affairs Hungary : Mr László KOVÁCS Minister for Foreign Affairs : Mr Joe BORG Minister for Foreign Affairs Poland : Mr Wlodzimierz CIMOSZEWICZ Minister for Foreign Affairs Slovakia : Mr Eduard KUKAN Minister for Foreign Affairs Slovenia : Mr Dimitrij RUPEL Minister for Foreign Affairs

9377/03 (Presse 137) 4 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

ITEMS DEBATED

PROGRESS OF WORK IN OTHER COUNCIL CONFIGURATIONS

The Council took note of a report from the Presidency on work underway in the Council's other configurations, meetings held since the last report on 14 April. (doc. 9180/1/03 REV1)

The Presidency's report draws attention to:

· The Education Youth and Culture Council on 5 and 6 May, where political agreements were reached on the Erasmus–Mundus programme, aimed at encouraging highly–qualified graduates and scholars from all over the world to undertake postgraduate studies at European universities, and on the e-Learning programme, providing for the integration of information and communication technologies in education and training systems;

· The Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council on 6 May, where conclusions were adopted outlining the EU response to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

· The Justice and Home Affairs Council on 8 May, where political agreement was reached on a draft Decision on the mutual recognition of financial penalties.

9377/03 (Presse 137) 5 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

PREPARATION OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL

The Council examined an annotated draft agenda prepared by the Presidency for the European Council to be held on 20 and 21 June in Thessaloniki, substantive preparation being scheduled for the Council’s meeting on 17–18 June. (doc. 9359/03)

The annotated draft agenda sets out the main items that the European Council is expected to address in Thessaloniki. The Presidency will draw on the outcome of work ongoing on many of these questions when submitting a revised final version of the agenda.

At this stage, the annotated draft agenda covers the following issues:

· Work in the Convention and in the future Intergovernmental Conference on a Constitutional Treaty for the European Union · Asylum and immigration · EU enlargement · Western Balkans · The "Wider Europe" initiative and the EU's relations with its future Eastern and Southern neighbours · Follow–up to the Spring European Council in Brussels · External relations

9377/03 (Presse 137) 6 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

REFORM OF THE STAFF REGULATIONS

The Council reached a political agreement on a proposal aimed at amending the staff regulations for European Union civil servants.

9377/03 (Presse 137) 7 EN PROVISIONAL VERSION 19.v.2003

ITEMS APPROVED WITHOUT DEBATE

TO BE COMPLETED ON WEDNESDAY 21.05.2003.

______

9377/03 (Presse 137) I EN