Signing of the Treaty of Lisbon
Date | 13 December 2007 |
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Location | Lisbon, Portugal Jerónimos Monastery |
Participants | Plenipotentiaries of the 27 Member States of the European Union |
The signing of the Treaty of Lisbon took place in Lisbon, Portugal, on 13 December 2007. The Government of Portugal, by virtue of holding Presidency of the Council of the European Union at the time, arranged a ceremony inside the 15th-century Jerónimos Monastery, the same place Portugal's treaty of accession to the European Union (EU) had been signed in 1985.[1] Representatives from the 27 EU member states were present, and signed the Treaty as plenipotentiaries, marking the end of negotiations that began in 2001. In addition, for the first time an EU treaty was also signed by the presidents of the three main EU institutions. After the main ceremony, the heads of state and government took a ride on a decorated Lisbon tram together, symbolising the brotherhood of European countries on the path of European integration.
Background
The diplomacy and brokering that lead to the political deal contained in the Treaty of Lisbon (then referred to as the 'Reform Treaty') was largely an achievement by the German presidency of the Council of the European Union, led by Chancellor Angela Merkel in the first half of 2007. At the meeting of the European Council on 18 and 19 October 2007, Portugal, which succeeded Germany as holder of the Presidency, did however insist that the Treaty be signed in Lisbon, the Portuguese capital. This request was granted, and the Treaty was thus to be called the Treaty of Lisbon, in line with the tradition of naming European Union treaties. The Portuguese presidency was appointed to the job of organising a programme and a ceremony for the signing of the treaty in late 2007, later specified to 13 December.[2]
Ceremony
At 10:00 the
List of signatories
Representatives from the member states signed the treaty in the following order:
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1.Foreign minister Karel De Gucht
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2.Sergei Stanishev
Dept. PM, Foreign min. Ivailo Kalfin -
6.Foreign minister Urmas Paet
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8.Theodora Bakoyannis
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9.Miguel Angel Moratinos
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11.Massimo D’Alema
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18.Jan-Peter Balkenende
Maxime Verhagen -
21.Luis Amado
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24.Ján Kubis
Location and decorations
The Portuguese presidency decided to arrange the main signing ceremony in the main chapel of the
The signing itself took place on a podium with a massive
Absence of Gordon Brown
British Prime Minister
Tram tour and Coach Museum lunch
After the group photo outside the monastery, the leaders took a ride on one of Lisbon electric trams together. This unusual way of transporting heads of state and government was described as a symbol of the fraternity of European countries on the path of European integration. The trip ended at the National Coach Museum of Portugal, wherein a festive lunch was held amid a historical collection of royal carriages. The delay of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown resulted with him arriving at the museum and signing the Treaty there.[7]
Demonstrations and criticism
Protestors were present in Lisbon when the treaty was signed. For instance the British pressure group I Want a Referendum staged a demonstration against the treaty being ratified in the United Kingdom by means of approval only by the British Parliament, without holding an additional referendum.[8]
The Treaty of Amsterdam established Brussels as the seat of all normal European Council meetings and as the signing coincided with one of those meetings, there was disagreement as to the venue. Belgium, keen not to set any precedent of holding mandatory meetings outside of Brussels against the treaty, wanted the meeting in Brussels whereas the Portuguese EU presidency wanted it in Lisbon in order to call the treaty, the Treaty of Lisbon.
The result was to sign the treaty in Lisbon, then continue the meeting in Brussels which became an open invitation for the media to attack the leaders for taking 27 separate unnecessary plane journeys, undermining the EU's environmental standing just as it sought to get international backing behind a post-Kyoto agreement. In the end, some leaders (such as the three Benelux leaders) plane pooled.[9]
Media coverage
The television coverage of the ceremony was produced by Rádio e Televisão de Portugal, the public broadcaster of Portugal.[10] The ceremony was broadcast live on for instance the website of the Portuguese presidency as well as on international television news networks, including Euronews.[10]
See also
References
- ^ a b José Sócrates on the signing of the Treaty of Lisbon
- ^ Proud Portugal leaves mixed EU presidency record, EUobserver.
- ^ "Government wins first round in battle over EU treaty". Agence France-Presse. January 21, 2008. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
The British leader raised eyebrows by arriving late for a grand ceremony to sign the new EU treaty in Lisbon last month with what many regarded as a flimsy excuse -- he had had to appear before a committee of MPs.
- ^ "Brown belatedly signs EU treaty". BBC. 13 December 2007. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
- Times Online. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
- ^ Robinson, Nick (13 December 2007). "Couldn't or wouldn't". BBC. Retrieved 14 October 2009.
- ^ Proud Portugal leaves mixed EU presidency record, Telegraph.
- ^ Events, I Want a Referendum.
- ^ EU leaders to sign up to new treaty, EUobserver.
- ^ a b EU Presidency, Portugal 2007.
External links
External image | |
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The Portuguese Presidency |
Official websites
- Ceremony of the signature of the Treaty of Lisbon (video; archive)
- Who's who
- Overview
Media reports
- EU leaders sign landmark treaty, BBC
- European leaders sign new EU treaty in Lisbon, EurActiv
- EU leaders sign landmark reform treaty with British PM absent, AFP
- Leaders Commit to EU's Future by Signing the Lisbon Treaty, Deutsche Welle
- EU leaders to sign up to new treaty, EUobserver
- Brown flies to Lisbon for belated EU treaty signing, The Guardian
- It is polite to turn up on time, The Guardian
- With glitz, EU marks start of Lisbon Treaty rules, Associated Press