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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) considers the role of the European citizens' initiative "as a tool for strengthening the democracy of the European Union", but "cannot agree that this tool will be used to extend the competence conferred to the EU on the basis of fundamental treaties".
The statement comes as a MAE response, at the request of AGERPRES, to the fact that the Court of the European Union announced, ten days ago, that it dismissed an action brought by Romania against the European Commission requesting the annulment of a decision to register a citizen initiative proposal regarding the protection of persons belonging to a national and linguistic minority - "Minority SafePack - one million signatures for diversity in Europe".
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterates its constant appreciation for the role of the European citizens' initiative as a tool to strengthen the democracy of the European Union and backs the use of the European citizens' initiative by EU citizens. The MAE cannot, however, agree that this tool be used to extend the competence conferred to the EU on the basis of fundamental treaties", shows the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Thus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs takes note of the decision of the EU Court in case T-391/17, Romania against the European Commission, a case initiated "in order to prevent the jurisprudential extension of EU competence in areas related to the sovereignty of the member states, such as protection of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities".
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs specifies that Romania has begun a process of analyzing the decision in question to determine if there are grounds for appeal.
The proposal for a European citizens' initiative "Minority SafePack - one million signatures for diversity in Europe" (the proposal for a European Citizens' Initiative), promoted by the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN), follows the adoption of a series of EU acts for the persons who belong to national and linguistic minorities.
This proposal indicates the areas in which the European Commission should intervene: regional and minority languages, education and culture, regional policy, participation, equality, media content, as well as state support to minority communities. The annex of the proposal contains 11 EU legal acts that the Commission should propose.
