TThe National Convention on the European Union published its recommendations, which are the outcome of a national discussion on the topic „The European political community and its future potential,“ attended by representatives of the state administration, both chambers of the Parliament of the Czech Republic, economic and social partners, together with representatives of European institutions, the non-profit sector and academics.

Three recommendations emerged from the opinions presented and the subsequent discussion.

  1. The European Political Community has proved to be a platform for informal meetings of representatives of European countries at the highest level and this character of the ENP should be maintained in the future. Inviting representatives of international organisations or other countries to specific meetings should be allowed if their participation would add significant value. The ENP is not intended to compete with other organisations in the European area or to replace integration processes such as EU enlargement. A valuable contribution of the ENP is its potential to create a space for dispute resolution at the highest political level, behind closed doors.
  2. In view of the topics discussed, the flexible nature of the ENP as a platform that responds to current challenges and developments with pan-European relevance should be further preserved. The definition of topics should continue to depend on the country currently hosting the Summit.
  3. The biannual organisation of the Summits seems adequate and the alternation between EU and non-EU countries, with some geographical diversity, is a positive feature. Although the ENP is not directly linked to the European Union, in the future the EU institutions, given their capacities, should be ready to provide support to the host countries if they wish and need it.