Europe has been in a process of restoring itself since the collapse of the Berlin wall. Indeed, we can already see the outlines of a new Europe.

But this process of renewal will not be a hopeful one if it is based primarily on a pursuit of something new rather on a reaffirmation of precisely the qualities that have made Europe so precious to us all.

As we look to the future, we must ask: is Europe prepared to unite in a way that will maintain its multiple identities? Is Europe ready to acknowledge that this plurality of identities is not only our most important common value, but also the ground from which human rights and democracy spring? And finally, are we Europeans going to be able to design a future that will maintain these values?

These are the questions all of us must ask ourselves. I congratulate your conference for focusing on them.


Lennart Meri

Paslepa, November 15, 1997

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