The European Union will continue addressing the many challenges the world faces today, EU High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini said at Munich Security Conference.

Mogherini said that the European Union will continue focusing on its immediate and wider neighbourhood.

“I am convinced that, as Europeans, we can only expect to be a credible global player if we act as a responsible power at our doorstep. Our priority are the many challenges that are most immediate and most urgent. We stand side by side with our partners and friends in the region, in defence against those that seek to undermine their values, their aspirations, their sovereign choices,”she said in her speech held on Sunday.

“We support their state building projects, their democratisation, economic reforms, as well as their European and regional integration. It is both a responsibility dictated by history and an interest dictated by geography,” she added.

“And we do that together, north and south, east and west of the European Union, united. As we know very well our strength comes from a balanced mix of diversity and unity,” Mogherini underlined.

Speaking about crises in Ukraine, Mogherini said:

“To our east, on European territory, the conflict in Ukraine has carried an unsustainable price in human lives, has shown us that one of the basic principles of international law – the respect of country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, and that you don’t change borders by force – can be violated. An extremely dangerous precedent, not only for Europe but for the rest of the world as well.”

According to her EU’s work was not only focused on solving the conflict.

“We also have to make sure that Ukraine becomes a functional state, I would say a success story. That is why we are supporting Ukraine in its broad reform agenda,” Mogherini said.

“The EU’s doors remain open for dialogue, but we cannot and we will not compromise on international principles and values. Never,” she concluded.

Fully speech can be found at:
http://eeas.europa.eu/statements-eeas/2015/150208_01_en.htm