European External Action Service

05/12/2023 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/12/2023 10:16

Ambassador Timo Olkkonen's Europe Day 2023 Speech

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Ambassador Timo Olkkonen's Europe Day 2023 Speech

© EUDSSD

SPEECH FOR EUROPE DAY 2023

Guest of Honour…

Honourable Ministers…

Excellencies, colleagues from the diplomatic corps

Honourable Members of Parliament

Honourable Justices

Partners from international organisations

Government officials

Ladies and Gentlemen, dear friends of the European Union

It is an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to host you on this Europe Day. Because of covid, the Delegation has not organised this event in the past three years, so it is with a special feeling of joy and gratitude that I stand here in front of you today.

After such a break, it is probably not out of place to remind ourselves why Europe is celebrated on this day. While Europe Day is a celebration of European unity in diversity, the exact date chosen commemorates a declaration by the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, who on 9 May 1950 proposed bringing French and German coal and steel resources under common, supranational control. European history is full of loaded important dates, so it might feel a bit peculiar that a declaration, which in those days was more of a vision, a hope, or a wish would now be attached with such importance.

But that vision was a bold one. Schuman presented his idea only five years after the end of the Second World War, a calamity which had left vast parts of Europe in ruins. May 1950 compared to the end of the war in Europe in 1945 is like 2018 is to today. Coal and steel were the two most important implements of war. As such they were harnessed to bring unspeakable suffering to Europe. They were the main instruments of destruction in two world wars. Schuman's idea idea was to make war impossible by agreeing on the use and control of those resources. Indeed, two years later the European Coal and Steel Community was established by the six first Member States. Can I hear a Schuman declaration oyee!

So 1950 was the start of European integration. That integration then deepened, covered more areas while the European Economic Community, the European Community and finally the European Union attracted more members, to become the family of 27 Member States that it is today, including the four Member States we have present here in Juba, our Team Europe partners France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. You will be able to taste some of their culinary heritage in the treats prepared here by Notos.

Although the EU covers in various ways most policy areas you can imagine, at its heart it remains a peace project. As such it has been a very successful one. If you look at European history, it is a story of wars with short periods of peace in between ever since the fall of the Roman Empire. European integration put an end to fighting between countries and ethnicities that had been at each other's throats for a good part of 1500 years. It was not for nothing that in 2012 the EU was granted the Nobel peace prize.

Tragically the demons unleashed by coal and steel have returned to Europe. Russia's brutal, unprovoked, unlawful and unjustified attack on the independent nation of Ukraine have now for more than a year brought to our cellphones, laptops and tv:s the very same images of industrial scale warfare, levelled cities, death and destruction we thought belonged only to Europe's past. Thousands of civilians have been killed, often on purpose by Russia, thousands of Ukrainian children have been abducted, millions of Ukrainians are refugees, 200 000 Russian servicemen have died. Why? For what?!

Russia's aggression on a sovereign nation is nothing short of modern day imperialism. Its disproportionate use of people from its own marginalised areas and ethnicities as cannon-fodder is nothing but modern day colonialism. We do not want to go back to 1939. We don't want 1914 back. The EU is ready to support Ukraine to fend off the invader, no matter how long it takes.

Russia's invasion is a threat to the multilateral system, a system of rules, which is not perfect, and has not been perfect, but which still is our best hope against a return to the bad old days when military might was used to establish a right. That kind of world would not be much different from the world when invaders came upstream on the river to take what they wanted from these territories. South Sudan also has an interest of defending multilateralism. Despite the deficiencies and ineffectiveness inherent in the global system, it is far better and more humane than an authoritarian and violent "rule by force" alternative.

The EU has been blamed that it cares about Ukraine but not about conflicts in other parts of the world, especially in Africa. I would contest that. Whether it has been through peacekeeping efforts, supporting the African Union to silence the guns or its humanitarian aid, the EU has been a partner for Africa in tackling its own crises. And we will continue to be there. Despite Russia's attack on Ukraine our support for development in South Sudan has not been reduced. Likewise our humanitarian aid has remained at the same level of 80 million euro per year as it has been before.

But it is true that when something terrible happens to your immediate neighbour, especially something, that awakens your own traumas of the past; rips open wounds of history you thought had already healed, you try help in whichever ways you can.

Despite of the many things we European and Africans share, and our common history together we still have a lot to learn from each other. I hope Africans would appreciate better our European history and the lessons we have had to draw from it. These explain our reaction to the Russian aggression. On the other hand we Europeans need to appreciate better the traumas and sensitivities Africans have about the heritage of their historical hardships and the imbalances of the current world order. There is a saying that that we have two ears and one mouth for a reason. Even though we diplomats tend to love the sound of our own voices, I commit myself to try to listen more to my South Sudanese interlocutors. (Guest of Honour, you are free to use a stopwatch when you meet me!)

I would sincerely like to thank the Government of South Sudan for its stand on Ukraine in the UN, joining the majority of nations in the world and also in Africa. This stand is materialised in South Sudan's votes, most recently in the vote in favour of the resolution condemning the attack in the UN General Assembly in February.

Instead of Ukraine, the eyes of most South Sudanese are of course now on the violence that has flared up in Sudan. It is a sorry state of affairs that after the revolution that brought so much hope, Sudan is once again at war with itself. The civilians are again those who suffer the most. The repercussions for South Sudan from the crises in Sudan will probably be more severe the longer the crises north of the border persists. We applaud South Sudan for its solidarity in keeping its borders open for returnees and refugees from Sudan. We also value and appreciate very much H.E. President Kiir's and his government's efforts to bring about an end to the hostilities in Sudan. We stand ready to support South Sudan in these efforts. The EU has not stood idle and has already allocated more aid to Sudan. We are looking at how we can assist the Sudanese in their plight further and today we are launching a humanitarian air bridge, to facilitate the transport of 30 tons of life-saving supplies from Dubai to Port Sudan.

The crises in Sudan should not draw our focus from the violence and lack of rule of law in many places in South Sudan. Recent reports by the UN show that serious human rights violations are still all too common. While you have the support of the international community to address these, ultimately it is for the government to provide security and safety for its citizens. That is why it is so essential to push forward with the peace process here in South Sudan.

I am encouraged by the reassurances of Honourable Deng Dau, Minister for Foreign Affairs, that the crises in Sudan indeed will not result in focus lost on the domestic peace process. Indeed, as South Sudan knows from its own history and again this is also what the events in Sudan show, a lack of commitment to peace can be fateful. As the EU, we are concerned about the serious delays in implementing the R-ARCSS, the South Sudan peace agreement. Time is running out in meeting the deadlines. It is however not too late. As we are in South Sudan, it is perhaps appropriate to use a basketball metaphor: now is not the time to drop the ball!

The EU is your partner in peace. I am proud that for the first time in the time of independence, we have a multiannual development programme with South Sudan, amounting to 208 million euro and covering the areas of green and resilient economy, human development, education and health and good governance, peace and rule of law. We are supporting the implementation of the R-ARCSS in various ways for example with technical assistance to legal reforms and public financial management. We are also supporting the institutional scaffolding of the peace agreement, the monitoring body R-JMEC and the ceasefire mechanism CTSAMVM, having become the largest donor for them both. We expect the government and other parties to show commitment and financial support to these bodies as well in order to have the transition ship sail to its harbour.

You cannot separate peace and development. One requires the other, but peace and rule of law is needed first. But while we tackle these day-to-day problems and while we continue to support the people of South Sudan through humanitarian and development aid, we need to start creating a credible vision on how we move towards stability and away from aid dependency to a situation where social services are provided domestically. And while both in South Sudan and in the world at large we are sadly preoccupied with conflicts, we should increasingly look how we work together to tackle global challenges, especially climate change and loss of biodiversity. We are globally facing a peril if we drop the ball on these ones!

Personally, I am looking forward to the tasks ahead! What could be more exciting than to create a constitution, a whole new social contract for a country! What could be more important than to set a country on a democratic pathway by having its first democratic elections! Of course one should not be naïve about the obstacles and challenges ahead, but if and when these goals are achieved, what a legacy it would be! I would certainly like to be there to witness it happen! I am looking forward for progress on these fields in an environment that is conducive for all South Sudanese to have a say on their future. The civil society and particularly women should have their voices heard. And if anyone thinks that the youth has nothing to say on these issues, you should visit the Scenius Hub here in Juba to engage them, like we did last Friday.

The event at Scenius was the first of our celebrations of not only Europe Day but also a Europe week! Tomorrow we will depart on a joint Team Europe field trip to witness the construction of the Nyamlel bridge in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, together with the Honourable Minister of Roads and Bridges. Indeed, Europe Day gives us the opportunity to showcase how the European Union is supporting peace and democracy in South Sudan through its development cooperation and humanitarian assistance. Under the theme 'Stories of resilience', 30 photos have been curated to celebrate our beneficiaries who continue to improve their lives despite the many challenges they face. You can see here photos about EU-funded projects in Northern and Western Bahr el Ghazal in a variety of sectors. From a green and resilient economy, to human development: education and health, to good governance and the rule of law. While the exhibition does not cover the full portfolio of the Delegation, we hope that this selection of photos will give visitors a glimpse of how the EU is working to help improve the lives of South Sudanese. We would like to thank our colleagues at Agriconsulting Europe for coordinating the organisation of the exhibition and Adam Ibrahim, for his outstanding photography. Most of all, we would like to express our appreciation to our implementing partners, with whom we carry out invaluable project activities on the ground.

Before I conclude, I would like to thank those who have made this evening possible: my deputy Dionyz Hochel, I don't know how I will be able to manage without him, and Francis Lagu, our invaluable institutional memory on all things on representation, public diplomacy and media. I would also like to thank Freda Mukoya and Dimitra Tzitrou for the many I suspect sometimes tedious hours they put in to make this reception a reality.

Guest of Honour, Ladies and Gentlemen, I do realise that after eight months I still have a lot to learn about this wonderfully diverse and fascinating country as well as about its people and often tragic history. I am grateful to the support of the EU Delegation staff, both our locals and our expats, who have had a lot of patience in trying to get me on the right track. They have made my transition from the shores of the mighty Zambezi to the banks of the eternal Nile so much smoother.

Guest of Honour, Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you.