European Council, 19-20 June 2000

Summary:

A summit of the European Council was held on 19-20 June 2000 in Santa Maria da Feira, Portugal. It drew to a close the Portuguese presidency of the Council. The agenda includes the following items:

• Call for the presentation of a draft Charter of Fundamental Rights before the next European Council meeting;
• Confirmation of commitment to establishing a Common European Security and Defence Policy;
• Enlargement process and launch of accession negotiations with Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania and Slovakia;
• Lisbon Strategy, by defining priorities areas going forward:
  • Transition for dynamic, knowledge-based economy (including the endorsement of eEurope 2002 Action Plan);
  • Modernisation of the European social model;
• Welcome of Greece as 12th member of the Eurozone;
• Agreement on proposal for a Directive on the taxation of savings;
• Endorsement of EU Action Plan on Drugs;
• Endorsement of report on the EU's external priorities in the field of justice and home affairs;
• Relations between Russia and the European Union;
• Decision on a Common Strategy for the EU on the Mediterranean region.

Official

European Parliament: Speech by the President of the European Parliament Nicole Fontaine, 19 June 2000 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/summits/fei-pres_en.htm

Portuguese Council Presidency: Conclusions of European Council summit, 19-20 June 2000 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/en/ec/00200-r1.en0.htm

---

News

BBC News, 19.06.00: Austria haunts EU summit http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/796551.stm

BBC News, 20.06.00: EU tax compromise agreed http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/798368.stm

BBC News, 21.06.00: Press divided over EU summit http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/monitoring/media_reports/800032.stm

---

Commentary and Analysis

EIPA: Eipascope, No. 3 (2000): The Feira European Council and the Process of Enlargement of the European Union http://aei.pitt.edu/id/eprint/790

---