Brussels, Jan. 20. 2021 (Lusa) - Portugal's prime minister, António Costa, in Brussels on Wednesday called for a conference on the future of Europe "as soon as possible", "focusing on the concerns and anxieties of citizens" and not on the EU institutions.

He added that "we need the Conference on the Future of Europe as a forum for debate between the Member States and with our citizens on what we want to build together as a Union in the future".

"As president of the Council of the EU, we will do everything we can to launch this conference as soon as possible so that we can conclude it with an open and enlightening debate", he announced.

He argued that the future of Europe lies in sharing "a common home and the same values", respecting the "different visions of the EU" without giving up identity or the freedom to make one's own choices.

"He stressed the need to do "justice to the motto of a Europe 'United in diversity'".

In his presentation to the European Parliament (EP) on the priorities of the Portuguese presidency of the Council of the EU, Costa said that the conference should still be "oriented towards common policies and responses to the strategic challenges we have to face in an increasingly less Eurocentric world".

In the first half of 2021, when Portugal chairs the Council of the EU, the prime minister has pledged to do his utmost "to enable the conference to be launched as soon as possible so that we can have an open and enlightening debate with broad participation".

The conference on the future of Europe, a two-year discussion forum, was scheduled to start on 9 May 2020 and last until the summer of 2022, but the Covid-19 pandemic forced its postponement.

Moreover, so far, the different institutions have been unable to agree on the politician who will chair the conference.

The conference aims to address the internal and external challenges facing Europe and the new societal and transnational challenges that were not fully foreseen when the Lisbon Treaty was adopted by creating a platform for discussion between citizens and the European institutions.

Under the slogan "Time to act: for a just, green and digital recovery", the main priorities of the Portuguese presidency of the council of the EU until the end of June are the promotion of a recovery from the economic and social crisis caused by the pandemic leveraged by the climate and digital transitions, the realisation of the European Pillar of Social Rights of the EU and the strengthening of the autonomy of a Europe open to the world.

IG/ADB // ADB.

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