This Article is From Jul 02, 2014

Europe Has Lost its Soul, Says Italy's Matteo Renzi

Europe Has Lost its Soul, Says Italy's Matteo Renzi

Matteo Renzi (file photo)

Strasbourg: Italy's popular new premier, Matteo Renzi, on Wednesday likened the European Union to a "tired" and "bored selfie" whose greatest challenge was to "find its soul."

Addressing the European Parliament as Italy takes up the rotating six-month EU presidency, Renzi asked the 751-seat assembly: "If Europe were to take a selfie what would come out?"

"What we would see is a face that is tired," said the 39-year-old centre-left premier. "Europe's selfie would be a bored selfie."

Taking over the EU helm from economically-struggling Greece, Renzi repeatedly refered to the history and culture of the two southern European nations as he harped on the need for the 28-nation bloc to find new momentum after a shock surge by anti-EU parties in May elections.

"We have a very deep wound left because of the recent short-term economic difficulties," he said.

"There is a major financial and economic issue," he added, "but the real challenge is to find Europe's soul and the real meaning of us being together".

The Italian leader, who is fast outshining France's President Francois Hollande as the voice of Europe's centre-left, vowed that Italy would stick to EU treaties such as the Stability and Growth Pact that lays down the bloc's fiscal rules.

With France and Italy struggling to comply with the Pact's rules of keeping the national deficit within three percent of GDP and debt to 60 percent of output, Renzi and Hollande have urged flexibility from their EU peers in imposing the rules.

Europe's high unemployment has been blamed by critics on belt-tightening austerity measures put in place in countries struggling to recover from the eurozone crisis.

At a summit last week, the pair succeeded in including the notion of more flexibility into the EU's policy agenda for the next five years.

Touching on foreign policy, Renzi said Europe must together address problems such as illegal migration from Africa and speak out against rights violations.

He also said all must be done to maintain eurosceptic Britain within the bloc.

"Europe can be a place of the future if we all play for it together."
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