Eating last night’s catch (and dealing with world events)

Portugal’s permanent representative to the EU Álvaro Mendonça e Moura compared the presidency’s agenda on external affairs to the menu at a fish restaurant, ie, you have to eat what has been caught the night before, in other words deal with whatever world events have emerged.

The presidency wants to focus on the world’s largest emerging market economies and will be holding summits with Brazil, Russia, India and China. The Portuguese would like to make progress with world trade liberalisation talks but if progress in the Doha round is blocked, which looks very likely, the presidency will focus on advancing negotiations on free trade areas with Brazil, India and South Korea.

Relations with Turkey will be tense as new French President Nicolas Sarkozy has threatened to review negotiations on membership with Ankara. He has promised to stay his hand until the December European Council, to avoid harming EU unity while efforts are being made agree a new treaty to replace the constitution. Mendonça e Moura said last week that the Portuguese presidency would "follow the same path" as the German presidency in continuing to open new negotiating chapters with Turkey. It should be easier to make progress in negotiations with Croatia.

The Portuguese presidency will also have to wrestle with the issue of Kosovo’s status, which stands very little chance of being resolved soon.

Portugal also needs to deal with negotiations on a stability and association agreement with Serbia, the European Neighbourhood Policy and the situation in the Middle East.

Portugal’s permanent representative to the EU Álvaro Mendonça e Moura compared the presidency’s agenda on external affairs to the menu at a fish restaurant, ie, you have to eat what has been caught the night before, in other words deal with whatever world events have emerged.