EU Delegation to New Zealand: Newsletter 21 Oct 2011

http://www.eu.org.nz/events.asp

European Parliamentary Visitor Impressed with New Zealand

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Ms Mara Bizzotto, Chair of the European Parliamentary Delegation for Relations with Australia and New Zealand, paid her first official visit to the country 16-19 October. She met with Dr Jonathan Coleman, Minister of Immigration, Ms Hekia Parata, Minister of Ethnic Affairs, and Opposition Spokesperson Maryan Street. She also attended a business roundtable and did several on-site visits in Auckland. She was honoured to be invited and be present at the major Maori Cuisine and Business show at the Waka Events Centre. After her first taste of NZ, Ms Bizzotto intends to return next year leading the official biannual visit of her delegation, well-briefed about NZ and its peoples. For more about Ms Bizzotto, please read:

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/members/expert/groupAndCountry/view.do?id=97198

Placido Domingo and Katherine Jenkins Raise Spirits and Money in Christchurch

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On 6th October, world-renowned Spanish tenor Placido Domingo and Welsh opera singer Katherine Jenkins, performed a special concert to raise money for a new Court Theatre and the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra which both lost their homes in the February earthquake. Governor General Jerry Mateparae and Prime Minister John Key joined more than 8000 citizens in what was a magical night. Placido Domingo concert made Christchurch come alive, made the city sparkle and gave hope and faith to a city that appreciates, understands and loves the Arts said PM Key. The opera star's sell-out concert raised over three hundred thousand dollars for the arts and lifted the city's battered spirits. Placido Domingo is reported to have lost four members of his family during the 1985 Mexican earthquake in which 10,000 people died.

Great News for Spanish Economy and Auckland
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In early October, Auckland Transport signed a contract with the Spanish manufacturer CAF for NZ$650 million to purchase 57 electric trains for the Auckland Metropolitan rail network. They will replace the diesel units currently providing passenger services to commuters in the city, incorporating the latest technologies in terms of safety, accessibility, environmental requirements and modern amenities. Speaking at Spain's national day reception in Wellington on 12th October, Spain's new Ambassador Jesus Miguel Sanz Escorihuela declared: "Our companies are internationally recognised in infrastructure, sustainable transport and renewable energies. In this field, there have already been some fruitful collaborative initiatives in wind generation. I am confident that very soon we will have more of our best companies in NZ. Likewise, we welcome NZ investments in Spain, a country which provides a friendly environment for business opportunities."

EU High Representative Catherine Ashton in Australia for CHOGM

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Catherine Ashton will be in Australia next week as a special guest of the Commonwealth Secretariat for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth. Shewill co-chair the "EU-Australia Piracy Event" with Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd. Catherine Ashton will be the guest speaker at a lunch hosted by Foreign Minister Rudd for Commonwealth Foreign Ministers, and is a panel member of a Royal Commonwealth Society function on human rights as well as a panellist at PM Gillard's "Empowering Women to Lead" event. The High Representative will also travel to Canberra for ministerial consultations with Foreign Minister Rudd (pictured together at ASEM in October 2010).

EU ratifies Convention establishing a fisheries organisation in the South Pacific

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The European Union has ratified the Convention setting up a new Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO), which, once it enters into force, will govern the fishing activities in the high seas of the South Pacific. The EU is the 6th Party to ratify the Convention after Belize, Cook Islands, Republic of Cuba, Kingdom of Denmark in respect of Faroe Islands and New Zealand. The South Pacific is one of the few remaining parts of the oceans which have not yet been regulated by an RFMO (Regional Fisheries Management Organisation) for non-tuna species. The South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) will manage non-highly migratory fish species in the region, including both pelagic and deep sea stocks such as jack mackerel and orange roughly. It covers a vast area including the waters from the most western parts of the South Pacific towards the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of South America. In order to enter into force, the Convention needs to be ratified by at least 8 partners, including at least 3 coastal states in the region and 3 long-distance fishing states. The EU hopes for rapid ratification progress, particularly by the coastal states in the area, to enable the South Pacific RFMO to become fully operational in the near future. The new organisation will allow for the effective management of fisheries resources and the protection of the marine environment in this vast area of the high sea. More information:
https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/385590/77448r2nh.html

EU committed to nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East

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Following the nomination by the United Nations Secretary-General of a facilitator and a host government for the conference in 2012 on the establishment of a zone free of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East, EU High Representative Catherine Ashton said "The EU has always been fully committed to the establishment of such a zone free of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East on the basis of arrangements freely arrived at by the States of the region." Read more:
https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/386565/77448153xy.pdf

The EU at the G-20 summit in Cannes

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The G-20 summit will take place on 3 and 4 November in Cannes, France. The European Union is a full member of the G-20 and will be represented by the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy and the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso. Presidents Van Rompuy and Barroso shared their ideas in advance of the summit in a letter sent to the other members of the European Council on 7 October 2011. Both Presidents will present the EU's position in Cannes after the European Council on 23October will have finalised EU preparations of the G-20 summit. In the letter, they stressed that "the fact that France holds the G20 Presidency this year gives Europe a special responsibility. We need to make the Cannes Summit a G20 Summit that restores confidence, supports sustainable growth and job creation, and maintains financial stability". Both leaders expect that Europe will be in the focus of the Cannes Summit. "Our G20 partners' perception is that if Europe does not solve its sovereign debt crisis there will be dangerous spillovers on the global economy. We need to show them that the European Union is determined to do whatever necessary to overcome the current difficulties. At the same time, we will also demand from our G20 partners a constructive contribution to face the global economic challenges."
[read more https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/386672/77448n284.html]

European Financial Stability Facility fully operational

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On 13 October, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso declared the fund to provide financial stability to the Eurozone was ready: "The enhanced European Financial Stability Facility is fully operational after Slovakia's ratification. The EFSF provides us with a stronger, more flexible tool to defend the financial stability of the euro area. This is in the clear interest of every one of the 17 Member States directly concerned, as well as for the wider European Union." [Read more]
https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/385750/7744810khj.pdf

India and Pakistan floods: Europe responds to desperate needs

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The European Commission will provide emergency funding of €3 million for the victims of the ongoing monsoon floods in India. The disaster has displaced between 200,000 and 300,000 people who are in urgent need of humanitarian relief. Experts from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Directorate General are in the field to monitor how needs evolve. The funding will provide food assistance, shelter, water and sanitation, and basic household items. Particular attention will be paid to highly vulnerable groups such as low caste and tribal communities, religious minorities, single-parent families, the disabled, children and the sick and elderly. The aid will be channelled through the Commission's humanitarian partners in the field. [Read more]
https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/385787/77448pzc6.html

The European Commission is also to boost its funding for emergency relief to Pakistan. In addition to €98 million for humanitarian assistance provided so far in 2011 (€86 million from the EC and €12 million from the EU Member States) another €6.5 million will be provided from the Commission's humanitarian budget to bring water and shelter, food and medical care to the victims of the monsoon floods. [Read more]
https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/386673/77448cspw.html

Next stages of EU Enlargement

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On 12 October the European Commission recommended granting EU candidate status to Serbia and opening of accession negotiations with Montenegro. In a set of annual reports, the Commission reported on the progress towards EU accession made by the Western Balkans, Turkey, and Iceland over the past year. In a year that has seen the closure of accession negotiations with Croatia; there has been further progress elsewhere in the Western Balkans. A dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina was established and has yielded initial results. Montenegro has strengthened its reform efforts based on the priorities set out by the European Union. The European Commission also confirmed its earlier recommendation to open accession negotiations with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Visa-free travel to the Schengen area was granted to the citizens of two more Western Balkan countries in December 2010, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The accession negotiations with Turkey have regrettably not moved into any new areas for over a year. Turkey's EU-accession process remains the most effective framework for promoting reforms, developing dialogue on foreign and security policy issues and strengthening economic competitiveness.

[read more https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmp9r/386772/c81d11j36.html]

Launch of first 2 operational Galileo satellites

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The first two operational satellites of the EU's global navigation satellite system are about to belaunchedin Kourou, French Guiana. This is just the first of a series of launches due to take off from Europe's Space Port in Kourou. The launch of the Galileo satellites at an altitude of 23,600km will lead to the provision of initial satellite navigation services in 2014. Successive launches are expected to complete the constellation by 2019.
[Read more] https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/386664/774485kg.html

Winners of the 2012 European Border Breakers' Pop Awards

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The winners of the 2012 European Border Breakers Awards, celebrating the top new talents in European pop music, were announced on 7 October by Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth at the music festival Eurosonic Noorderslag. The winners of the 2012 awards are: Elektro Guzzi (Austria); Selah Sue (Belgium); Agnes Obel (Denmark); Ben l'Oncle Soul (France); Boy (Germany); James Vincent McMorrow (Ireland); Afrojack (Netherlands); Alexandra Stan (Romania); Swedish House Mafia (Sweden) and Anna Calvi (UK), who will be in Australia in December for the Peats Ridge Sustainable Arts and Music Festival.

[read more https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvmzpj/385591/774487682.html]

Academic news and events

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The EU Centre Network in New Zealand has made a call for papers on "European Dilemmas: Internal and External issues facing the European Union" for its annual conference on December 7-8, University of Waikato, New Zealand. More information:www.eucnetwork.org.nz https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm18h/371459/8a136mdpp.html .

The Erasmus Mundus Students and Alumni Association unites all the students and graduates of the Erasmus Mundus programme. The Oceania Chapter has launched a Facebook page https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm18h/371967/8a136zrff.html and a Webpage https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm18h/371968/8a1368prs.html.

If you are newly selected Erasmus Mundus student, we encourage you to join EMA https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm18h/371969/8a136144yn.html - the registration is free of charge

Study Portals is the European Study Choice platform, bringing transparency for students to the wealth of study opportunities in Europe's unifying Higher Education Market. It stimulates and inform students on (inter)national study choice and helps Universities with easier and more effective international marketing & recruitment. Almost all large international student associations are official partners. http://www.studyportals.eu/ https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm535/373701/8f28fy6tc.html https://promo-manager.server-secure.com/ch/6327/rvm535/373702/8f28f12dsn.html

European Union Delegation: publications available online

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Key facts: update October 2011 http://www.delaus.ec.europa.eu/Publications/KeyFacts/KeyFactsSept2011.pdf

EU Insight: European External Action Service http://www.delaus.ec.europa.eu/Publications/EU_Insight/EU_Insight_EEAS-2011.pdf

Study in Europe 2011 http://www.study-in-europe.org.au/ EU Insight: Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) http://www.delaus.ec.europa.eu/Publications/EU_Insight/EU_Insight_ETS_2010.pdf

EU Insight: Lisbon Treaty http://www.delaus.ec.europa.eu/Publications/EU_Insight/LisbonTreaty2009.pdf

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