Speech by Minister Kaag at the EU Heads of Mission (HoMs) meeting

Speech | 22-06-2020

Ambassador Marković,

Your Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

The Dutch novelist Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer writes that the history of Europe is the history of longing for the past.

Of course, with so much shared history between us, it’s understandable that we frequently look back for inspiration, or that we feel the burden of our complicated past.

After all, there are two souls in the European body: that of Romanticism, and that of rationalism. One compels us to be rooted in the past, the other urges us forward. One reminds us where we come from, the other where we might yet go.

In our current predicament, it’s natural to long for the world of yesterday – but it’s also counterproductive. The world has been shocked into change, and we have a duty to look forward with an open mind.

Over the last few months I’ve frequently wondered how we’ll remember this time in the years to come. We stand at a crossroads, and the decisions we take now will reverberate long into the future. Our choices on economic recovery, climate change, and international trade and cooperation will shape the future. Through them we remake our world. Either we look to the dreams of the past and build back – or we look to the opportunities of the future, and build back better.

Today, we can rightly say that we’re living through a historic time. COVID-19 has had a disastrous impact around the world – and, as Your Excellencies are well aware – it has hit our continent hard. Only a few short months ago, our discussions were of an entirely different nature.

For one, we held them in person.

Soon, this may be possible again. Now that we’re cautiously beginning to reopen our societies and our borders, we inevitably face questions on the nature of that reopening. Questions that will decide our future: what sort of society do we want? Which values do we emphasise?

Ladies and gentlemen,

We face these choices not just as 27 states, but also as one union. A team with 27 players. Our joint effort in tackling the multiple crises still before us will have a far greater impact than we could ever hope to achieve by going it alone.

I want to stress the importance of this partnership in three areas in particular: development cooperation, economic recovery and international trade.

Let me begin with development cooperation. COVID-19 has been disastrous worldwide, but its impact is particularly vicious in the developing world. Preventative measures like physical distancing and regular handwashing are next to impossible in sprawling urban areas, or underdeveloped rural areas, where people live squeezed together in cramped conditions. Often they don’t have access to clean water, or money for soap. The economic crisis now following the initial health crisis means that more than 300 million people could lose their jobs, and that famine looms. The World Food Programme estimates that as many as 265 million people could face acute food insecurity in the near future. The International Labour Organization estimates that wages in the informal sector throughout the developing world have decreased by as much as 80 per cent. In addition, billions of children have missed months of school, and many may never return to the classroom, as their parents keep them at home to work.

Worryingly, while Europe is reopening, the virus continues to spread in Africa – with transmissions increasing rapidly. Our efforts should be focused on helping African countries to stem this immediate crisis, as well as helping them to build back better. As you’re well aware, in matters of public health especially, we’re only as strong as the weakest link. This crisis demands a global approach – and the European Union should spearhead this. In a world where hostility is on the rise and nations are increasingly putting their own interests first, we have both the opportunity and the obligation to pick up the torches of multilateralism and cooperation. Our strengthened partnership with Africa is part of this, as is the Team Europe approach through which the Commission, Member States and EU institutions work closely together in their COVID-19 responses. The Netherlands unequivocally supports this initiative, and has contributed more than 100 million euros towards the international COVID-19 response.

The Team Europe approach will be most effective if it prioritises programmes that reach the most vulnerable. One way to do this – and one that’s very close to my heart – is through mental health support. In this crisis, we’ve seen psychosocial needs increase enormously, both in affected communities and amongst the aid workers and medical staff that assist them.

We must therefore include mental health and psychosocial support as an integral part of any recovery effort. I believe that it may well prove to be one of the most effective tools in helping people cope with the long-term effects of the multiple crises we’re now living through.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The second issue I would like to address is that of economic recovery. After an unparalleled shock to the global economy, the world is now pouring an unprecedented 17 per cent of global GDP into that economy through support packages. We must ensure that these are aligned with both the SDG agenda and the Paris goals. That’s how we can give meaning to the phrase ‘building back better’. Our economic recovery must be powered by low-carbon infrastructure, green jobs and resilient livelihoods.

This requires visionary leadership. We have a decade left before 2030 – and we need to ensure it’s a decade of action. The current drop we’re seeing in annual emissions does not yet reflect a systemic change. We have a unique opportunity to make it a systemic change. We have both the plans and the means to ensure emissions are reduced with the required speed. By achieving a global net zero economy we create economic growth, new jobs and more resilience. If we fall short now, our long-term objectives will never be met. This is the last decade in which we can still keep climate change in check – and we have a responsibility to do so. In the words of Charles Michel: ‘the world after COVID-19 must not be a carbon copy of the one before’. The EU needs to provide global leadership in translating these words into action.

The same is true in the business world. I’m glad to see that European businesses are taking a global leadership role. Now, more than ever, it’s crucial to show responsible business conduct. The UN Guiding Principles still stand, as do the OECD guidelines. The Netherlands supports companies by taking over wage costs and loosening the conditions of export credit insurance. In turn, we call on companies to do their part.

As I said earlier, the current crisis disproportionately affects the most vulnerable. These are typically the people at the beginning of supply chains, in production countries. They rely on our demand for their health, safety and income. Although these are difficult times, companies have a responsibility to improve cross-border cooperation on responsible business practices, so as to improve supply chains as well as the lives of those working in them. Now, more than ever.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The final point I’d like to raise with you is international trade. In a joint non-paper, my French colleague and I recently called on the EU to increase its ambition on the nexus between trade and sustainable development, particularly as regards the Green New Deal. For some time now, I have worried about the dark clouds gathering over international trade. Sadly, COVID-19 has now unleashed the storms they carried. Countries were forced to close their borders in the interest of public health. This was necessary, of course, but it disrupted supply chains and broke down trade flows.

We have all been confronted with uncomfortable dependencies on single suppliers. As I have said before – and will go on saying – protectionism and the decoupling of global value chains is not the answer. We do, however, need to be more aware of vulnerabilities, and diversify supply chains in order to decrease unwanted dependencies and to strengthen our strategic resilience. This is not just a challenge, it also presents us with the opportunity to invest in value chains with partners closer to home: our Southern neighbours and Sub-Saharan Africa.

It’s in the urgent interest of the global economy that international trade is restored. It’s crucial that global supply chains are reopened, and that new trade barriers are avoided. At the same time, like in development cooperation and the broader economy, trade should return in a way that’s better than before.

The benefits of free trade have previously been unevenly distributed, causing considerable social unrest. Future trade agreements must be based on thorough assessments, so that their value can be maximised for all stakeholders. Only when trade works for everyone, does it really work. Around the world, countries are considering keeping their drawbridges raised. We need to convince them that this is in no one’s best interest. The best way to do this is by ensuring that trade is not just profitable for some, but equitable for all. We must work towards more resilient and sustainable global supply chains that are no longer driven by just-in-time delivery and bottom-of-the-barrel prices. Instead, they should be more flexible, less dependent on single suppliers, and more inclusive and sustainable for all those involved.

To achieve this, future trade agreements must be comprehensive, inclusive and sustainable. They should better incorporate responsible business conduct, properly address global climate measures, and promote transparency and better business behaviour.

Building back better needs to be more than just a slogan. If we are to construct a more resilient and sustainable society, economic recovery has to provide us with a strong foundation. Improved trade will give us the means to build a better society, and renewed international and development cooperation will help to ensure that more people share in its prosperity, as well as protecting it against a resurgent epidemic.

Ladies and gentlemen,

We can only do this as a team. Europe has plenty of experience in dealing with crises. But the challenges we face today are of an entirely different magnitude and nature than what we’ve seen before. We have not, in living memory, dealt with a crisis like this – which is why we cannot take refuge in old certainties. The old lands on which we construct our new societies should be the foundations that raise us higher, allowing us to see further than we could before. We must build on the history that brought us to where we are today, while avoiding the mistakes that set us on destructive paths. In the words of the Italian novelist Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa: ‘everything must change for everything to remain the same’. It’s the central paradox of our current predicament. Let it also be our inspiration in moving forward.

Thank you.