It must be said that, when I was elected to be one of the Party’s delegates to the Council of what was then ELDR and is now ALDE (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Europe), I had a vague idea that the travel would be interesting.
And yes, Dresden and Palermo were interesting, despite there not being very many direct flights. Yerevan, on the other hand, was not exactly an obvious destination, although the warmth of the welcome, and the sheer enthusiasm for ‘Europe’ was invigorating for someone who has to deal with the UKIP approach to our geopolitical neighbourhood. So, when invited to Croatia by the
The logo of the Istrian Democratic Assembly
Well, 1 July sees the accession of Croatia as the twenty-eighth member of the European Union, extending its borders further into Central Europe and extending its coastline down the Adriatic as far as the Montenegro border. To celebrate this, ALDE will gather from across the continent to focus on the theme of “Enlarging the Union”.
There will be seminars on European citizenship and on the ‘case for Croatia’, on EU enlargement and populism in the Western Balkans, as well as a lunchtime meeting to discuss illegal migration.
For those who aren’t tempted by these opportunities, there will be a discussion about the 2014 European Parliamentary elections, a speech from Vesna Pusić MP, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia and resolutions on developing a pan-European ALDE Party and on the Israel/Palestine situation.
So, if you’re interested in coming to Pula, and want to find out more about the event, contact Peter Lesniak in the Party’s International Office at peter[dot]lesniak[at]libdems[dot]org[dot]uk. Sadly, there is no financial support, but it might make for a very pleasant week away if you make it a holiday. Pula’s Roman ruins, excellent seafood and the beautiful countryside of Istria, with its Venetian history and Italian influences, make it a fascinating corner of Europe to explore.
* Mark Valladares is a directly elected member of the Party’s delegation to ALDE Council, and is looking forward to the train ride from Stuttgart to Zagreb…
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One Comment
LibDems need to hold a serious debate on the subject of ‘Enlarging the Union’.
It’s not that expanding the borders is a bad thing, but that it must go hand in hand with greater integration. Gaining new members is not a substitute for institutional reform.
This harks back to the ‘deepening vs widening’ argument during the early 1990s.
As recent events are repeatedly showing one without the other leads to cracks opening up in the relationship by placing too much emphasis on one side.
Europe’s success demands a deeper AND wider union.