Working Breakfast with Enrico Letta On the 26th of May , DIKTIO organized another “working breakfast with famous world leaders” with special guest the former Italian Prime Minister, Mr Enrico Letta. The discussion consisted two sessions. The first session was about the new structure of EMU and the crisis in Greece and Italy while the second was about migration in the Mediterranean. 1st session: The Former Prime Minister began his speech by stating characteristically that this period Athens is the “real” capital of Europe. He mentioned that we live in a turbulent period. New political forces come to the fore, as demonstrated by the recent elections in Spain and Poland, while in Italy the only party that seems to maintain upward perspective is that of Grillo. Mr. E. Letta underlined the need of “more” Europe in certain areas, for example the management of the increased migration flows in which the national solution constitutes no solution! He also mentioned, that the Juncker’s plan for development is a smart solution, but the problem from where the money will come and if there is indeed “real” money, as the greater amount of the project comes from leverage. Regarding the reforms in the EMU, Mr. E. Letta, underlined the importance of the Summit of June – for the evolution of European Union – as there will be presented the new plan for the new structure of the EMU. The cornerstone of this effort should be a credible euro. The only way to face EU’s potential Brexit and the problems that create gaps in the structure of the EMU is a Union of two speeds. That is, a further consolidation and deepening of the Member States using the common currency, and a looser association for the rest with Britain among them. A Union without Britain is very difficult to achieve, and only the fact of the single market makes Britain inseparably linked with the EU. Finally, for the Greek crisis, Mr. E . Letta stressed the need for a solution that transmits stability, a unique solution not in continuations and consecutive episodes. The “troika” made errors regarding the assessments and the attitude towards Greece, while a Greek exit from the EMU would constitute the beginning of the end for the common currency. Germany many times, said Mr. E. Letta, seems like it is the only country that gives money for the rest, but it isn’t true. Italy and Spain have also provided a sizeable amount. 2nd session: Regarding the migration flows, Mr. E. Letta pointed out that the EU didn’t provide a real solution to address the problems that arise from increased migration to the countries of South Europe. Characteristically he stressed that the Italian Mare Nostrum program started on his tenure, funded with nine million euros per month, while the European Triton program only with 3 milllion euros per month. He also said that while the Mare Nostrum project was based on humanitarian dimension of the problem, the program Triton was purely a police- intervention program. Today, migration has not only increased, but it has changed with respect to its quality. The immigration reasons are now 50% economical and 50% political (refugees). The EU has faced and has caused many failures in addressing this issue: Iraq, Syria, Libya. To effectively address the migration issue, the EU should examine the question on a comprehensive European basis including the 28th countries and not every country to prefix its national interests.
