During its constitutive meeting for the 2010-2015 mandate, Michael SCHNEIDER, State Secretary, Delegate of the State of Saxony-Anhalt for the German Federation, was today elected President of the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions by acclamation for a 2 and a half year renewable term.

On learning of Rumiana Jeleva's decision to resign her post as Commissioner-Designate, the Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, regretted this decision at a political level, but conveyed his understanding of her move at a personal level.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens congratulated today Yulia Tymoshenko for receiving about 25% of the vote in Ukraine’s first round of Presidential elections and passing into the second round of 7th February:

"The Commissioners-Designate will be judged on their European commitment and their ability" - Joseph Daul

"We cannot remain silent in the face of such a crime committed in the centre of a European capital", said Joseph Daul, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, in reaction to the assassination of the well-known Bulgarian journalist Bobby Tsankov in Sofia.

The President of Nea Demokratia (ND) and leader of the official opposition of Greece, Antonis Samaras, visited today the headquarters of the European People’s Party (EPP) in Brussels and met with the President of the EPP Wilfried Martens and the Secretary General of the EPP Antonio Lopez-Isturiz. Samaras and his 4-member delegation discussed with the EPP leadership the political and economic situation in Greece. ND is a longstanding member-party of the EPP.

EPP Secretary General, Antonio López-Istúriz, was deeply sorry to hear of the death of Cuban dissident Orlando Zapata Tamayo, who was on hunger strike, and holds Castro’s regime “responsible for this unfortunate event”.

The Foreign Ministers of the European People’s Party (EPP) met on the 20th of February in Rome in preparation of yesterday’s GAERC meeting in Brussels. Hosted by Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini and co-chaired by Elmar Brok, MEP, the EPP Foreign Ministers discussed the European External Action Service, civil protection and EU-Russia relations.

Le Président du Parti Populaire Européen (PPE) et ancien Premier Ministre de Belgique, Wilfried Martens, a fait part de son profond chagrin suite au décès de plusieurs personnes dans l’accident de train survenu aujourd’hui à Halle en Belgique: “Je présente mes sincères condoléances aux familles des victimes de cet accident tragique et dévastateur et je souhaite un prompt rétablissement à toutes les personnes blessées”.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, and the EPP Vice President Jacek Saryusz-Wolski denounced today's actions of the Belarusian authorities against the civil society and democratic opposition in Belarus.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, and EPP Secretary General Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, welcomed the outcome of the EU Summit held today in Brussels. The 27 EU heads of state and government focused on implementing a renewed economic strategy for employment and growth in the EU and declared their support for Greece in resolving its budgetary crisis.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried MARTENS, welcomed today the large majority that the Barroso II Commission received today in the European Parliament. In the new Lisbon era, President Jose Manuel BARROSO and his team have received the mandate to bring the EU forward. In the new 27-member Commission, the EPP has a total of 13 members including two Vice Presidents (see list below) whereas the ELDR (Liberal party) has 8 and the PES (Socialist party) has 6. EPP Secretary General Antonio LOPEZ-ISTURIZ also welcomed the new Commission.

Italian Minster for Labour and Social Affairs Maurizio Sacconi will chair the new EPP Ministers of Employment, Labour and Social Affairs group, following a decision taken by the EPP Presidency. Sacconi will chair on behalf of the EPP Ministers the preparatory meetings prior to the scheduled meetings of the Council of Ministers, in conjunction with Irish EPP Vice President and Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny.

Der Vorstand und die Generalversammlung der Europäischen Volkspartei (EVP) hat heute den ehemaligen Österreichischen Landwirtschaftsminister, Vize-Kanzler und Finanzminister, Mag. Wilhelm Molterer, einstimmig zum co-Vorsitzenden der EVP Arbeitsgruppe Landwirtschaft gekürt.

Fine Gael leader and EPP Vice President Enda Kenny will chair the new EPP Ministers of Employment, Labour and Social Affairs group, following a decision today by the EPP Presidency. Kenny will chair EPP preparatory meetings prior to the scheduled meetings of the Council of Ministers. For the past three years, the EPP has been organising with success important Ministerial meetings such as Foreign Affairs, Economy and Finance, and Energy.

Questa mattina il Presidente del partito popolare europeo (PPE), Wilfried Martens, ed il Segretario Generale del PPE, Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, hanno espresso la loro grande soddisfazione per'la vittoria elettorale ottenuta da tutta la coalizione di centro-destra guidata dal Primo Ministro Silvio Berlusconi nelle recenti elezioni regionali in Italia:

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, and the EPP Secretary General Antonio Lopez-Isturiz expressed this morning their great satisfaction in the election victory of PM Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right coalition in Italy’s regional elections:

“I am particularly pleased that in these regional elections, which came in the mid-term before the next national elections, people gave their trust to Silvio Berlusconi and his centre-right coalition. The wishful thinking and ‘predictions’ of the European left have once again back-fired,” underlined President Martens.

On learning of the Moscow suicide bombings, the President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, stated the following:

The Austrian Minister for Agriculture, Niki Berlakovich (ÖVP) chaired last night the first meeting of the European People's Party (EPP) Ministers of Agriculture. The EPP Ministers' meeting coordinated on a political level today’s scheduled Council meeting and gave impetus to EPP’s commitment in the common agriculture policy. EPP President Wilfried Martens hosted the meeting in the Party headquarters in Brussels.

The European People’s Party (EPP) concluded earlier today its Summit of heads of state and government and EU institution leaders to prepare the European Council. This major European centre-right gathering featured Commission President Jose Manuel BARROSO, Council President Herman VAN ROMPUY and Parliament President Jerzy BUZEK as well as 10 EU heads of state and government: Angela MERKEL (Germany), Jean-Claude JUNCKER (Luxembourg), Fredrik REINFELDT (Sweden), Jan-Peter BALKENENDE (Netherlands), Silvio BERLUSCONI (Italy), Traian BASESCU (Romania), Boyko BORISOV (Bulgaria), Valdis DOMBROVSKIS (Latvia), Lawrence GONZI (Malta), and Yves LETERME (Belgium). Joseph DAUL, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Antonio LOPEZ-ISTURIZ, EPP Secretary General, and members of the EPP Presidency also attended. Photos of the Summit can be found at

Wilfried Martens, President of the European People’s Party (EPP) and Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, EPP Vice-President, expressed today their support to Anatoly Lebedko, Chairman of the United Civil Party Belarus, an EPP member-party. In February this year, Mr. Lebedko was arrested for standing-up publicly for minority rights, against the repression of the Union of Poles in Belarus, and in favour of fundamental rights such as freedom of assembly, thought, and expression:

The Prime Minister of Bulgaria and President of GERB, Boyko Borisov, emphasised yesterday in Sofia the great support that he and his government receives by the European People’s Party (EPP). In a conference on "The Bulgarian example in the fight against corruption and organised crime in Europe," jointly organized by the EPP and its member-party GERB, PM Borisov, joined by EPP President Wilfried Martens and EPP Secretary General Antonio Lopez-Isturiz,underlined the important reforms that the Bulgarian government is now implementing.

The European People’s Party (EPP) heads of state and government and opposition leaders, along with the Presidents of the Commission, Council and Parliament – Jose Manuel BARROSO, Herman VAN ROMPUY and Jerzy BUZEK - will be meeting on 25 March 2010 in Brussels for the regular EPP Summit hosted by EPP President Wilfried MARTENS.

The Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, has strongly condemned the fatal shooting of a French policeman by Spanish terrorist group ETA.

The leader of Fidesz and Vice President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Viktor Orbán, secured in yesterday’s second round of parliamentary elections a 2/3 ‘super’ majority in parliament. EPP President Wilfried Martens personally congratulated Orbán last night for the impressive second round result and for becoming EPP’s 14th EU Prime Minister.

The leader of Fidesz and Vice President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Viktor Orbán, has scored a landslide result in the first round of parliamentary elections in Hungary. Fidesz received a whopping 53%, an unprecedented result in the history of democratic Hungary. EPP President Wilfried Martens personally congratulated Orbán last night for the result and after the second round in two weeks, he’s set to become EPP’s 14th EU Prime Minister.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, sent this morning his condolences to the Polish people, following the deadly plane crash of Polish President Lech Kaczynski.

On the occasion of the UNFCCC Climate Change Talks, taking place in Bonn, Germany from 31 May to 11 June 2010, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens expressed his hope for concrete steps forward.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, met on Tuesday 18 May 2010 with Mikulas Dzurinda, President of the Slovak SDKU-DS, and Iveta Radicova, the SDKU-DS Prime Ministerial candidate. During the meeting, they discussed the current status of the campaign for the upcoming Slovak elections and also relations between EPP member-parties

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens made the following statement about the current political situation in Ukraine:

“I am very concerned about the developments in Ukrainian politics after the recent Presidential elections. These negative developments have become systematic in nature and are threatening the rule of law and fundamental human rights and civil liberties.

The European People’s Party (EPP) congratulated today the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government, which was announced last night by the new British Prime Minister David Cameron.

EPP member-party representatives met on 10 and 11 May for the meeting of the EPP Political Assembly. The EPP met in Vilnius on the occasion of the commemoration of the 20 years of the restoration of independence of Lithuania. The event was hosted by the Prime Minister of Lithuania and leader of TS-LKD, Andrius Kubilius.

The European People’s Party (EPP) and representatives from the 72 EPP member-parties from 39 countries, will meet today and tomorrow in Vilnius for the regular meeting of the EPP Political Assembly on the occasion of the commemoration of the 20 years of the restoration of independence of Lithuania. The event will be hosted by the Prime Minister of Lithuania and leader of TS-LKD, Andrius Kubilius.

Today marks the 60th anniversary of the historic Schuman declaration, the proposal by French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, which laid the foundations for a united Europe. The European Union honors this day as ‘Europe Day’ to celebrate peace and unity in Europe. The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens paid tribute to Robert Schuman and also underlined the need for economic governance:

“Robert Schuman was a great visionary and a great Christian Democrat. After the destruction and hardship of the World War, Schuman and his close associate Jean Monnet understood the importance and necessity of European unity as the only way to ensure lasting peace and prosperity. The Schuman declaration laid the foundations for the united Europe that we have today; and in the last six decades the EPP family and our leaders have been building the European project with great dedication,” Wilfried Martens underlined.

The Presidency of the European People’s Party (EPP) and representatives of the 72 EPP member-parties from 39 countries will meet on 10 and 11 May in Vilnius for the regular meeting of the EPP Political Assembly on the occasion of the commemoration of the 20 years of the restoration of independence of Lithuania. The event will be hosted by the Prime Minister of Lithuania and leader of TS-LDK, Andrius Kubilius.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens, warmly congratulated this evening Christian Wulff for his election as Germany’s new President. Wulff, a leading member of the CDU and former Minister President of Lower Saxony, was nominated on 3 June 2010 by Angela Merkel, Horst Seehofer, and Guido Westerwelle, the heads of the CDU (EPP), CSU (EPP), and FDP governing parties. Christian Wulff received an absolute majority of 625 of votes in the German Federal Assembly, which is composed of the German Parliament plus an equal number of representatives from the federal states.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated this afternoon Pál Schmitt for his election as Hungary’s new President. Pál Schmitt, a former member of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, was nominated for the position of Hungary’s Head of State by Hungarian Prime Minister and EPP Vice President Viktor Orbán.

As a follow-up to the recent meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the European People's Party (EPP) in Assisi Italy, the President of the EPP, Wilfried MARTENS, and the coordinators of the EPP Foreign Ministers' group, Franco FRATTINI, Foreign Minister of Italy, and Elmar BROK, Member of the European Parliament, made the following statement on Albania:

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed this evening the European Council’s conclusions on economic reforms, EU 2020, and Estonia’s accession to the Eurozone. These conclusions were to a large extent prepared yesterday at the EPP Summit of heads of state and government and institution leaders in Meise.

The European People's Party has adopted in its Working Group on Economic Policy a position paper on EU's new strategy for sustainable economic growth, the EU2020 strategy (see attached pdf file). The Working Group is co-chaired by EPP Vice President Rumiana Jeleva and Swedish MEP Gunnar Hökmark.

The EU Heads of State and Government and the Leaders of the opposition of the European People's Party (EPP), along with the Presidents of the European Council, European Commission, and the European Parliament have been invited on 16 June 2010 in Meise, Brussels for the statutory Summit of the Party.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has expressed his sorrow for the death of the former President of Malta, Guido de Marco, who passed away yesterday at the age of 79.

Professor De Marco was Deputy Leader of Maltese Partit Nazzjonalista between 1977 and 1999; Deputy Prime Minister from 1987 to 1996 and from 1998 to 1999; and President of Malta between 1999 and 2004. He was also Minister of Interior and Justice and Minister for Foreign Affairs of his country. In September 1990 he was elected President of the United Nations General Assembly and had to deal with important events like the Gulf War.

EU and non–EU heads of state and government and opposition leaders of the European People's Party (EPP), along with the Presidents of the European Council, European Commission, and the European Parliament have been invited to participate in the upcoming Summit of the Party, which will take place in Meise, Brussels, on 15 September 2010.

The winners of the 60 second film competition Poverty in Europe: Can you picture the way out? organised by the European People's Party and its Group in the Committee of the Regions were announced today as part of its activities to involve citizens in the debate surrounding the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. Leona Kunayovaj of the Czech Republic won 1st prize for her animated film Future possible, 2nd prize was awarded to a Greek entry from Kostas Karydas entitled It's possible and young Hungarian Máté Pálla took the 3rd prize for Something Less.

Michel Barnier, EPP Vice-President, has been appointed as the UMP leader for the European elections campaign in France. The centre-right party, which held its national meeting on Saturday 24th, is now complete with a new head, Xavier Bertrand, former social affairs Minister.

EPP Secretary General, Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, is convinced that the EPP will win the European elections to be held in June 2009 and, consequently, will remain the main political force in the European Parliament.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated this evening Barack Obama for his inauguration as the new President of the United States of America and expressed hope that his new Administration will support the strengthening of transatlantic relations.

Offering his season's greetings to the European press, Joseph Daul MEP, Chairman of the EPP-ED Group (centre-right), the biggest and most influential group in the European Parliament, emphasised the importance of "a strong Europe in a European Union which uses its influence" to play the role of mediator, be it for the situation in the Middle East or for the energy crisis which has hit Europe.

The European People’s Party (EPP) has congratulated its President, Wilfried Martens, for the key role played in solving the political crisis in Belgium.

The European People's Party (EPP) has adopted its draft Manifesto for the European elections to be held in June 2009, which includes the EPP’s five priorities: Creating Prosperity for Everyone; Making Europe a Safer Place; Combatting Climate Change; Tackling the Demographic Challenge; Uniting Europe on the World Stage.

The EPP President, Wilfried Martens, has today congratulated Valdis Dombrovskis, MEP and member of the EPP-ED Goup, on his nomination as Prime Minister of Latvia. Mr. Dombrovskis is a member of “New Era”, one of the EPP's member parties.

The EPP President, Wilfried Martens, has welcomed today’s European Commission report on the 2004 and 2007 enlargements of the European Union (EU).

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, said today that “Bulgaria needs a change and the only alternative is GERB”, adding that the next elections in Bulgaria will be the most difficult in the last 18 years.

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, met today the Mayor of Sofia and leader of GERB, Boyko Borisov, and GERB Chairman Tsvetan Tsvetanov, and expressed to them EPP’s support for the upcoming European and national elections in Bulgaria.

At the invitation of the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate, a delegation of the European People’s Party (EPP) led by President Wilfried Martens participated on Sunday, 1 February 2009, at the enthronement of its new Patriarch Kyrill I. The 4-member delegation included EPP Vice President and Member of the European Parliament Alojz Peterle as well as EPP Secretary of External Relations Kostas Sasmatzoglou and EPP Political Adviser Galina Fomenchenko.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, today welcomed the founding of the new Italian party Popolo della Liberta (PDL).

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed today his regret for yesterday's vote of no-confidence against the centre-right government of Mirek Topolanek in the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic currently holds the 6-month rotating Presidency of the European Council.

The Heads of State and Government of the European People’s Party (EPP) today decided to back Jose Manuel Barroso for a second term as President of the European Commission.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will meet on 19 March 2009 in Brussels.

Today the EPP expressed its support to the PPCD ahead of the parliamentary elections in Moldova on 5 April.

The EPP Heads of State, Government and Opposition, along with the Presidents of the European Commission and the European Parliament, will meet on 19 March in Brussels for the EPP Summit.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Valdis Dombrovskis for his official confirmation by Parliament as the new Prime Minister of Latvia.

EPP President Wilfried Martens is shocked about yesterday´s massacre in a school in Winnenden, Germany state of Baden-Württemberg. 16 people were killed.

"I welcome the decisions taken yesterday by our European leaders to strengthen our Single Market and our common currency, the Euro, in an attempt to fight the effects of the current economic crisis in Europe”, said the President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, today.

Representatives of the 74 EPP members parties unanimously approved the electoral document during the second session of its Extraordinary Congress held on 29 and 30 April in Warsaw under the EPP slogan for the elections: “Strong for the people”.

EPP Leaders, including 12 Heads of Government of the European Union (EU), debated today in Warsaw its Manifesto for the forthcoming elections to the European Parliament.

The EPP will hold an extraordinary Congress in Warsaw (Poland) on 29 and 30 April to adopt its Manifesto for the forthcoming elections to the European Parliament and to launch its electoral campaign.

The EPP will hold a Congress on Warsaw (Poland) on 29 and 30 April to adopt its Manifesto for the coming elections to the European Parliament. EPP Prime Ministers, Leaders of the opposition and representatives from all the member parties and the EPP associations will participate in the Congress. The EPP has also invited a large number of non-European guests to follow the Congress. Detailed information on the Congress will be updated regularly on the site www.eppwarsaw2009.eu

Today the President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated Gjorgje Ivanov for his victory in the presidential elections held yesterday in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

The President and Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio López-Istúriz, have expressed their condolences to the Italian Government led by PM Silvio Berlusconi for the tragic earthquake in L'Aquila and other towns.

Last week, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the bi-annual evaluation of the EU-Belarus dialogue.

The Secretary-General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, stressed that the EPP has been always promoting its strong support to our partners in Belarus and defending democratic principles, the rule of law and fundamental European values beyond our borders.

Europe is facing a major challenges concerning the present transitions in world economy. The European People’s Party believes that together we shall find an answer to the world-wide crisis, which is fundamentally affecting the everyday life of the people. In order to be able to act efficiently in the interest of our citizens, we need a strong Europe based on values.

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, today reminded that the way for facing the current challenges, mainly the economic crisis, is “more Europe, not less”.

Today EPP President, Wilfried Martens, welcomed the outcome of the G-20 meeting in London and underlined that “strong cooperation between the main economies around the world is the right way to tackle the current economic crisis”.

The European People’s Party (EPP), the largest political force in Europe with 13 heads of state and government in the European Council, criticized the populist tactics of the Party of European Socialists (PES) in the campaign for the elections in the European Parliament. The PES leadership reached new lows recently when it characterized the center-right voters of the EPP as “barbarians” and accused many distinguished EPP candidates as “terrible” or the “worst” there is.

The high profile panelists - John Bruton, former Prime Minister of Ireland and current EU Ambassador to the United States, Jamie Shea, the Head of the Policy Planning division of NATO, Elmar Brok, MEP, the President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, EPP Secretary General and MEP - debated on how a self-confident and strong Europe can play a stronger role on the world stage.

The EPP held a debate today entitled “Making Europe a Safer Place", one of its five priorities for the forthcoming European elections.

To mark the "Day of Europe", the President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, stated that “more than ever the EU is the best solution to tackle the challenges facing our society”.

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, today welcomed the decision of the Czech Senate to ratify the Lisbon Treaty.

The current economic and financial crisis, and the measures to deal with it, was today debated during a conference organized by the EPP and the CES and attended, amongst others, by the President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, ECB Vice-President Lucas Papademos; Finnish Minister of Finance Jyrki Katainen; and Greek Minister of Finance, Ioannis Papathanasiou.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, visited today Albania to support the Democratic Party and its leader and Albanian Prime Minister, Sali Berisha, ahead the general elections to be held in the country on Sunday 28 June.

The President and the Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, today congratulated the newly elected Presidency of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, led by the re-elected Chairman, Joseph Daul, and his ten Vice-Presidents.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens expressed today his condolences for the tragic death of his friend and Belgian political colleague Karel Van Miert.

At yesterday's Summit of heads of state and government of the EPP, Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader had the opportunity to inform the leaders of his latest proposal to unblock the accession negotiations of Croatia.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed today his great satisfaction for the decision of the European Council to unanimously support Jose Manuel Barroso for a second term as President of the European Commission.

The heads of state and government of the European People’s Party (EPP) gave today their full support to the President of the European Commission Jose Manuel BARROSO for a second term at the EPP Summit.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will meet on 18 June 2009 in Brussels.

The EPP Heads of State, Government and Opposition, along with the Presidents of the European Commission and the European Parliament, will meet on 18 June in Brussels for the EPP Summit.

Statement by Wilfried Martens, President of the EPP and Joseph Daul MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group:

The European People's Party (EPP) offered today its full support to the new initiative of the European Commission to immediately free-up €19bn in earmarked funds for tackling unemployment as a result of the current economic crisis in Europe.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens and the Secretary General of the EPP Antonio Lopez-Isturiz congratulated today Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and his government for receiving a vote of confidence in the Bulgarian parliament with 162 votes. Borisov and his GERB party, who won a sweeping victory in the parliamentary elections earlier this month, is a member of the EPP.

Wilfried Martens, the President of the European People's Party (EPP, Europe's centre-right political family), welcomed the decision of Iceland to submit an application for EU membership. Iceland, with a population of just 320.000, has traditionally been skeptical about joining the European Union.

The Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, wants the next President of the European Commission voted by Parliament at its plenary session in Strasbourg in September.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens expressed his sadness for the passing away of former MEP and EPP Group Vice Chairman Christopher Prout, Baron Kingsland. Prout, who passed away on July 12th 2009 at the age of 67, negotiated in 1990-92 with Martens the inclusion of the British Conservatives in the EPP Group in the European Parliament.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens expressed today EPP’s full support to Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and the priorities of the Swedish EU Presidency. The priorities of the Swedish Presidency focus on the economic and financial crisis and the road to a new global climate agreement. Among the other priority issues are the Stockholm Programme for justice and home affairs and the EU’s strategy for the Baltic Sea region. Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt is the leader of the Moderate party of Sweden, an EPP member-party.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens expressed his delight for the overwhelming support that Jerzy Buzek, the former Polish Prime Minister and Civic Platform MEP, received with his election as the new President of the European Parliament. Buzek, the EPP candidate, received 555 votes out of the 736 MEPs and secured the support of the main political groups in the European Parliament. President Buzek, together with Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and President Jose Manuel Barroso, complete the triad of EPP leaders that will head the EU in the coming months.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed today the decisions taken at the G8 Summit in L’Aquila, Italy, on climate change. These decisions reflect many of the proposals that the EPP made in its Warsaw manifesto during the campaign for the June 2009 European elections.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens has welcomed the formal nomination of José Manuel Barroso for a second term of office as President of the European Commission. The European Parliament will soon have to approve his nomination.

The Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul MEP, has declared that he has signed a technical agreement on the Presidency of the European Parliament with the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, sent his warmest congratulations to the new Croatian Prime Minister, Jadranka Kosor, who received today a vote of confidence in parliament. Last Saturday, Mrs Kosor was also elected President of the HDZ, an associate member of the EPP.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed today EPP's wish for a more political Commission and his expectation that the EPP heads of state and government will do their part when they propose their nominees:

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has hailed the CDU and the CSU, member-parties of the EPP, and their leaders Angela Merkel and Horst Seehofer for the great victory obtained today in the German parliamentary elections. According to the results, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to form a centre-right government with the FDP, replacing the current grand coalition partner, SDP, which marked its lowest score in the post-war era. Merkel is one of the 14 EPP heads of state and government in the European Union, making the EPP the strongest and most influential European political party with an absolute majority of leaders in the European Council.

In an article published in one of the main newspapers in Ireland, Fine Gael leader and EPP Vice President Enda Kenny outlines the main arguments on why the Irish people should vote Yes for the Lisbon Treaty:

On a visit to Dublin, Ireland, on the 22nd and 23rd of September, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed his strong support to Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny who is campaigning in favor of the Lisbon Treaty.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed his deep sorrow for the death of the six Italian soldiers recently killed in Afghanistan.

The President and the Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP) met yesterday in Madrid with the President of Partido Popular, Mariano Rajoy. The Partido Popular is a long-standing member of the EPP.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Ján Figel on his election as President of Slovakia's Christian Democratic Movement (KDH). The KDH is a member-party of the EPP and Ján Figel was until now one of EPP’s 9 European Commissioners. At a Congress held in Nitra yesterday, Figel received an overwhelming 304 out 309 delegate votes.

The President and the Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, expressed today their delight with the re-election of Jose Manuel Barroso as European Commission President. They underlined the “strong mandate” that Barroso has and the “new impetus” he will give to Europe.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed today the agreement on resolving the border dispute between Croatia and Slovenia; in effect, when the agreement comes into force, it will unblock the accession negotiations of Croatia with the European Union. The agreement was brokered between Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor and her Slovenian counterpart. Kosor is also the leader of the HDZ, an associate member-party of the EPP.

The Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio López-Istúriz, today underlined the “positive result” of this week’s visit of Bulgarian PM, Boyko Borisov, to Brussels.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens warmly welcomed the conclusions of the European Council on the Lisbon Treaty and Climate Change and praised the Council President, Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, for the successful result:

The EPP Heads of State and Government including the President of the European Council, Prime Minister Fredrik REINFELDT, along with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Jerzy BUZEK, will meet on 29 October 2009 in Brussels.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) and former Prime Minister Wilfried MARTENS will be visiting London on the 27th and 28th of October to launch his latest book “Europe: I Struggle, I Overcome” and to discuss in various fora Britain’s role in Europe, the EU under the Lisbon Treaty, and transatlantic relations.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) and the Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Wilfried Martens and Joseph Daul respectively, have expressed their confidence in Traian Basescu, who is running for another term as President of Romania.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens concluded this morning a 2-day official visit to Croatia where he met with Croatian Prime Minister and HDZ leader Jadranka Kosor and many government Ministers. The HDZ is an associate member of the EPP. During the visit, President Martens expressed his strong support for the continuation of Croatia’s accession negotiations and expressed his conviction that the country will soon become a member of the European Union. Martens also received an official state decoration from the Croatian state, in recognition of his strong support to Croatia’s European path (click here for info offered by the Croatian Prime Minister's website).

The Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio López-Istúriz, today met in Brussels with Jordanka Fandakova, candidate of GERB for Major of Sofia and current Minister of Education, Youth and Science.

A 6-member delegation of the European People's Party (EPP), led by its President, Wilfried Martens, along with Secretary General Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, concluded today a successful 5-day visit to Washington DC. The visit was hosted by the International Republican Institute (IRI), the partner organization of the EPP which, for the past 4 years, has strengthened together with the EPP transatlantic relations on a political level. The purpose of the EPP visit was to strengthen realtions with the Republican party, to get an insight in the new foreign and security policy of the Obama administration, and to discuss prospects for global economic recovery and the future global financial architecture with the IMF and with relevant experts.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the signing of the Lisbon Treaty by the President of Poland and urged the President of the Czech Republic to do the same:

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed the positive vote on the referendum for the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland, which according to exit polls is in excess of 60% and expressed his expectation that the Treaty will soon come into force.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens congratulated today Antonis Samaras for his election as the new leader of Nea Demokratia (ND), a long-standing member party of the EPP. Samaras is a former Minister and former MEP of the EPP Group.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried MARTENS, welcomed the announcement of Commission President Jose Manuel BARROSO (EPP) of the portfolios for the newly-nominated members of the Commission.

The European People’s Party (EPP), the largest political party in Europe, will hold its Statutory Congress in Bonn, Germany, on 9 and 10 December 2009. Detailed information on the Bonn Congress can be found at www.eppbonn2009.eu

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, and the Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, congratulated today Traian Basescu for his results in the first round of the presidential election in Romania.

Wilfried Martens, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP) and former Prime Minister of Belgium, received last night from King Albert II the task of implementing a transition process in the Belgian government, following the nomination by the European Council of Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy as the first President of the Council under the Lisbon Treaty.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated the Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy (EPP) and Commissioner Catherine Ashton (PES) for being nominated by the 27 EU heads of state and government for the positions of President of the Council and High Representative for Foreign Affairs. EPP Secretary General Antonio Lopez-Isturiz also congratulated the nominees.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens hosted today in the headquarters of the EPP (rue du Commerce 10) a meeting of EPP Ministers of Foreign Affairs, in view of preparing today’s GAERC meeting of the Council of Ministers.

Wilfried Martens, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP), paid tribute today to former Belgian Prime Minister Pierre Harmel, one of the most important Belgian politicians since World War II, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 98:

"With the Lisbon Treaty finally ratified by the EU-27, Europe must now take decisions", said the Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul MEP, speaking before Frederik Reinfeldt and José Manuel Barroso at a session of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Wilfried Martens, President of the European People’s Party (EPP) and Prime Minister of Belgium during the historic events of 1989, remembers the day of the fall of the Berlin Wall and its significance: (Watch video here)

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, made the following statement regarding the results of the Climate Conference in Copenhagen:

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed this morning his outrage at the attack against Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi last night in Milan. Berlusconi and his PdL party are members of the EPP.

The EPP concluded its second and final day of its Congress proceedings in Bonn at the historic old Bundestag building (see EPP TV video and speeches: 1st day and 2nd day). Over 1500 delegates from 71 parties and 39 European countries attended, as well as hundreds of international guests from across the world. Hosted by German Chancellor Angela MERKEL and the re-elected EPP President Wilfried MARTENS, the Congress adopted many resolutions and a key new document on the Social Market Economy. In addition the EPP Congress elected its new Presidency.

The former Prime Minister of Belgium, Wilfried Martens, was re-elected today for a new 3-year term as President of the European People’s Party (EPP). President Martens (73) received the overwhelming support of delegates (92 per cent) on the first day of the two-day EPP Congress, which is taking place in Bonn, Germany in the historic former Bundestag building. The Congress is hosted by Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The EPP concluded today the first day of its two-day Congress proceedings which are taking place in Bonn, Germany at the historic old Bundestag building. Hosted by German Chancellor Angela MERKEL and EPP President Wilfried MARTENS, the Congress featured speeches from the President of the European Parliament Jerzy BUZEK, the Chairman of the EPP Group in the EP Joseph DAUL, and leading non-EU heads of state and government such as Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka KOSOR, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia TYMOSHENKO, Albanian Prime Minister Sali BERISHA, FYROM Prime Minister Nikola GRUEVSKI, and Georgian President Mikheil SAAKASHVILI. Horst SEEHOFER, Minister-President of Bavaria and CSU leader, and Jürgen RÜTTGERS Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia also welcomed the delegates and guests.

The leaders of the European People's Party (EPP) and the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Wilfried Martens and Joseph Daul, have warmly welcomed the electoral victory of Traian Basescu for a new 5-year term as President of Romania:

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens has made the following statement on the celebration of the Lisbon Treaty, which entered into force today:

Today the European People’s Party (EPP), the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions (EPP/CoR) and Europe Metropoles jointly organised its second European meeting of EPP local councillors in Brussels. It brought together over 60 European representatives and regional elected officials from capital cities in order to exchange best practices and draw inspiration from each other.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens has congratulated Malta on becoming the third Member State, after Hungary and Slovenia, to ratify the EU Reform Treaty following the motion by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi (PN) and the consequent unanimous approval in the Maltese parliament. The new Treaty will give Malta a sixth seat in the European Parliament, from the current five.

The European People’s Party (EPP) congratulated this evening Slovenia for becoming the second country to ratify the new Reform Treaty of the European Union (EU).

The European People’s Party (EPP), the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions and Europe Metropoles are holding a policy seminar on 30 January entitled “The Role of the European Union for our Capitals: Realities and Perspectives”. The meeting will bring together politicians, belonging to the EPP family, who have been elected in the capital cities of the 27 EU member countries in order to exchange experiences and best practice in their relations with the European Union.

The Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio López-Istúriz, today met with Yulia Tymoshenko in Brussels during her first trip abroad after being sworn-in as Prime Minister last December.

Following the resignation of the Head of the Italian Government, Romano Prodi, after losing a vote of confidence in the Senate, Joseph Daul, the Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament said: "The time for change, the time for an alternative, has come for this country, the time for action too."

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, today welcomed the presentation by the European Commission of a new package of measures to increase renewable energy in order to combat climate change.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens warmly congratulated today Ivo Sanader and his government for receiving this evening a strong vote of confidence from the Croatian parliament. Sanader’s government is comprised by two EPP associate-member parties – HDZ and HSS – as well as a number of independent and minority members of parliament. Sanader, who won a second term as a result of the November 25, 2007 elections, received today 82 out of 153 votes in parliament.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, congratulated today Mikhail Saakashvilli for his re-election as President of Georgia. According to the central election commission, Saakaashvili won about 52 percent of votes cast on Saturday, almost twice as many as his nearest challenger. Both the Council of Europe and the OSCE who monitored the elections, declared that despite some voting violations, elections were essentially free and fair and the result was a true expression of Georgians' will.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed today the start of the new Slovenian Presidency of the European Council, led by Prime Minister Janez Janša (EPP). Slovenia is the first of the 12 new EU member-states to preside over the European Council.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens concluded yesterday a 4-day trip to Moscow and Istanbul after meeting with the Christian Orthodox leadership of the Patriarchate of Russia and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, respectively. These visits where conducted in the framework of the ‘Orthodox Dialogue’ that was launched 12 years-ago between the EPP and the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The leadership of the European People’s Party (EPP) today warmly congratulated this morning’s unanimous election in Vienna of Walburga Habsburg Douglas (Sweden, MOD) as the new Chairperson of the EPP Group in the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE. Ms. Habsburg Douglas succeeds Panos Kammenos (Greece, ND), who was appointed in recent months as Deputy Minister of Maritime Affairs in Greece.

The European People’s Party (EPP) has launched “DialogueTV”, its new interactive web TV channel, which will be used to communicate with the citizens, particularly in view of the forthcoming European Election Campaign for 2009.

Antonio López-Istúriz, Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP) and Executive Secretary of the Centrist Democrat International (CDI), said today that the resignation of Fidel Castro, President of Cuba, “is good news but not sufficient…after five decades of dictatorship the Cuban people deserve a true, this time peaceful, revolution that gives way to a democratic rule.”

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens personally congratulated this evening Ioannis Kasoulides for winning the first round of Cyprus’ presidential elections. Kasoulides is a former Foreign Minister during the Clerides administration and current MEP in the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament.

The European People´s Party (EPP) is concerned with the draft Media Law on which discussions started yesterday severely limiting freedom of expression and media freedoms by the Slovak Parliament on the proposal of the Government of the Slovak Republic.

Statement by EPP President, Wilfried Martens, on Slovakia:

“Today the Party of European Socialists re-admitted the Slovakian SMER-SD party into the family of European Socialists. This clearly shows a great deal of short memory as the PES signed the Berlin Declaration in 2000 that forbids member parties to form coalitions with extremists in Europe.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has made the following statement on the political situation in Italy:

“Following the dissolution of the Parliament and in the perspective of the elections of 13 and 14 April 2008, I invited the parties of the Centre-Right in Italy to unite in a common battle against the Centre-Left coalition.

The EPP congratulated Luc Van den Brande on his election as President of the Committee of the Regions (CoR), and Isidoro Gottardo as President of the EPP Group from 2008 to 2010.

Following the dissolvement of the Italian Parliament after an unsuccessful attempt last week by the speaker of the Italian Senate, Franco Marini, to form a new institutional government, early elections have been called upon for 13 and 14 April.

The Secretary General of the EPP, Antonio López – Istúriz, has welcomed the “strong interest” shown by PES President in “DialogueTV”, the EPP's new web TV channel: “his recent comment proves that we are interested in real dialogue and interaction with all the citizens, even with those that do not support our ideas and principles”.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has warmly congratulated Yves Leterme on his appointment as Prime Minister of Belgium ending
the political crisis suffered by the country during the last nine months.

The EPP is celebrating the excellent achievement of its website results and record number of visitors. As you can see from the graph, our number of Unique Visitors (UV) has noticeably risen over the last three years.

EPP President Wilfried Martens has sent a message to Prime Minister Sali Berisha offering his condolences to the bereaved families and sympathy to those who were injured during the massive explosions at an army storage near the Albanian capital, Tirana, on Saturday.

EPP President Wilfried Martens formally denies that the European People’s Party has suspended Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica’s DSS party as a member of the EPP.

The EPP leaders, including 10 Heads of Governments from European Union (EU) Member States and four from non-EU countries, met today in Brussels to debate the challenge of climate change and the agenda of the European Council, amongst other topics.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the three Presidents of the European Union - Janez JANSA of the European Council, Jose Manuel BARROSO of the European Commission, and Hans-Gert POETTERING of the European Parliament - will meet on 13 March in Brussels.

To mark the European day in memory of the victims of terrorism, the President and the Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio López-Istúriz, have reiterated “our strong commitment to fight against any kind of terrorism.”

The European People's Party (EPP) has welcomed the victory of PM Lawrence Gonzi in the general elections held in Malta.

The Secretary General of the EPP, Antonio López-Istúriz, has strongly condemned today’s assassination of Spanish former town councillor Isaias Carrasco by the terrorist group ETA, and expressed his solidarity with the relatives of the victim, the Spanish Socialist Party, and the political family of the Party of the European Socialists (PES).

EPP representatives, along with European Union officials and company delegates, yesterday debated how to save energy efficiently in the housing and building sectors.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, warmly welcomes the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty by Germany, Denmark and Portugal.

On 28 April the EPP is holding a policy debate on how to save energy efficiently in the housing and building sectors.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated the leader of the centre-right coalition Silvio Berlusconi, for his landslide victory in the Italian elections.

Leaders of the EPP met in Dublin today to debate the economic situation in Europe during a meeting hosted by the Leader of the Fine Gael and Vice President of the EPP, Enda Kenny. The basis for the discussion was the document on tax competition recently adopted by all the EPP member parties.

EPP leaders, along with the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will meet on 14 April in Dublin to discuss the situation of the economic markets in Europe.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, today congratulated Poland for ratifying the Reform Treaty of the European Union (EU).

Wilfried Martens, the President of the largest translational party of Europe, and Joseph Daul, the Chairman of the largest political group in the European Parliament, have today congratulated the Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and his party for winning the parliamentary elections of 21 May.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed the Resolution on Turkey, as a conclusion of an outstanding report by EPP MEP Ria Oomen-Ruiten, which was adopted yesterday by a large majority of the European Parliament and in particular, the need for the country to deepen and expand the reform process.

On the tenth anniversary of his death (22 May 1998), the European People’s Party (EPP) remembers Francisco Lucas Pires with admiration, gratitude and sadness.

The European People’s Party (EPP) Group in the Committee of the Regions (CoR) held a photography competition for young Europeans called "Europe@Home: Europe starts in our communities". Through this contest the EPP Group aimed to encourage young people to show their ideas about the European Union and integration. Over 150 photographs were submitted from 22 of the EU member states.

On 15 May the EPP adopted its paper –“Tackling the demographic challenge – Solutions for the ageing of our societies”- as a draft document.

The Secretary General of the European People's Party (EPP), Antonio Lopez-Isteriz, today condemned the terrorist attack by ETA on a police station in Legutiano (lava) and the assassination of one of its men.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed today the electoral victory of the pro-European alliance “For a European Serbia” led by Serbian President Boris Tadic and includes as a senior partner EPP member-party G17plus of Economy Minister Mladan Dinkic.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has warmly congratulated Antonio Tajani, currently  Head of the Italian delegation of Forza Italia in the European Parliament and Vice-President of the EPP, for his designation by the new Italian Government for the position of European Commissioner for Transport, following the resignation of Franco Frattini as EU Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security.

On the occasion of Europe Day, the President of the EPP Wilfried Martens stated today that “the European project is an enormous success story because it has been embraced by the citizens – it’s a citizen’s project that has to be maintained and strengthened. In other words, we need more Europe that can bring more benefits to the citizens.”

EPP President Wilfried Martens congratulated German Chancellor Angela Merkel for receiving today the prestigious International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen.

Representatives from EU institutions, study centres and associations discussed the demographic change that Europe is currently facing during a debate organised yesterday by the EPP.

The EPP will soon be releasing a position paper on one of its main topics for the 2009 European elections: Demographic change and how to cope with the ageing society. In view of this, the EPP will hold a policy debate on the issue on 24 June.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, participated in the Partido Popular Congress in Valencia (Spain) over the weekend, where Mariano Rajoy was re-elected as President of the Party.

The European People’s Party (EPP) expresses its satisfaction with further progress in the EU accession negotiations with Croatia and fully supports all the efforts aimed at concluding these negotiations during the mandate of the present European Commission. We encourage all sides involved to intensify their hard work in order to bring negotiations with Croatia to a successful conclusion as soon as possible.

The leaders of the EPP agreed today that the European Union (EU) should continue the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.

During a Summit held in Brussels, they also underlined the necessity of avoiding any blockage of the EU by the current situation. In particular, they expressed support for the process of accession of Croatia.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Antonio Tajani on his appointment as European Commissioner for Transport after the hearing held in the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the three Presidents of the European Union 's institutions - Janez JANSA of the European Council, José Manuel BARROSO of the European Commission, and Hans-Gert POETTERING of the European Parliament - will meet on 19 June 2008 in Brussels.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, expressed this afternoon his disappointment with the negative result of the Irish referendum to approve the Lisbon Treaty:

“I respect the result, but I am very disappointed because it seems that most Irish citizens were poorly informed about the content of the Treaty and its importance for Ireland and Europe,” said the EPP President.

Speaking at Fine Gael's final event for the broadcast media, Fine Gael Leader and EPP Vice President, Enda Kenny TD, urged people to focus on the real implications of the Lisbon Treaty as they prepare to cast their votes.

The President and Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio López-Istúriz, participated in the “ Summer University”, a meeting with local journalists from all EU Member States, co-organized by the EPP and the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions. This year the meeting was dedicated to intercultural and interfaith dialogue.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has welcomed the court ruling in Turkey in which the governing AK Party, the Justice and Development Party founded by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was excused from a ban following accusations that it was undermining the country's secular system. The AKP is an observer member of the EPP.

Wilfried Martens, EPP President, has congratulated Nikola Gruevski, Prime Minister of FYROM (former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia), on the formation of the new coalition government, which was recently approved by the Parliament.

The EPP today welcomed the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty by the United Kingdom.

“This is excellent news for the process of ratification and shows again that the European Union needs and wants the Lisbon Treaty,” stated EPP President, Wilfried Martens.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has expressed his sadness at the loss of Bronislaw Geremek and sends his condolences to the family.

During the debate today in the European Parliament with the French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, the Chairman of the EPP-ED Group, Joseph Daul MEP, welcomed the ambitious programme of the French Presidency of the Council of Europe which aims at finding solutions to the numerous problems faced by European citizens, bearing in mind that we have to work fast to implement the Lisbon Treaty.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has strongly condemned the latest terrorist attack in Istanbul against the U.S. Consulate, which killed six people.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has said “we need Europe more today than ever” to respond to the global challenges that the world is facing.

This afternoon Nikos Anastasiades and the Democratic Rally (DISY) voted in favor of the Lisbon Treaty and, in effect, secured its ratification in Cyprus. The governing radical left AKEL party of Cyprus President Dimitris Christofias voted against the Treaty, putting in jeopardy its ratification.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, today expressed his satisfaction for the liberation of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages who were kidnapped by the Colombian terrorist group FARC.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has today welcomed the start of the new French Presidency of the European Council, led by President Nicolas Sarzoky, member of the EPP.

The European People’s Party (EPP) will participate next week at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul (USA) with a large delegation headed by EPP President Wilfried Martens and Secretary General, Antonio Lopez-Isturiz.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has today expressed his grave concern and great disappointment over Russia’s decision to recognise Georgia’s breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states.

The President and Secretary General of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens and Antonio López-Istúriz, have today expressed their condolences to the families of the victims who suffered in today's accident at Madrid's Barajas airport when a passenger plane swerved off the runway.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens has expressed today his deep concern over the violent fighting in South Ossetia (Georgia) and the attacks on Georgian civilian aims beyond South Ossetia from the army of the Russian Federation.

The Group of the European People’s Party and like-minded of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe met today to discuss the agenda of the fall meeting of the OSCE-PA and the Georgia crisis in particular.

With respect to the continuing instability in Georgia following Russia’s military intervention in Georgia-proper in August 2008, the President of the European People’s Party, Wilfried Martens, called today on Russia to respect Georgia:

One man can foster our irreplaceable bonds
Published: September 6 2008 03:00, Financial Times
From Mr Wilfried Martens.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Senator John McCain for formally receiving the nomination for Presidential candidate of the Republican Party for the November 2008 US elections.

On Tuesday, 2 September 2008, the European People’s Party (EPP) hosted in St. Paul (U.S.) a public event with representatives of the Republican Party, international leaders, policy experts and business executives. More than 300 participants attended the event, which took place on the margins of the Convention that the Republican Party, which will be officially nominating Senator John McCain as its candidate for President of the United States.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated today Kokoomus and its leader, Deputy Prime Minister and EPP Vice-President, Jyrki Katainen, for the strong victory in the communal elections held yesterday in Finland.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated today Andrius Kubilius, leader of the EPP member party TS-LKD, for his great victory in the second round of parliamentary elections held yesterday in Lithuania.

The European Parliament Plenary session in Strasbourg today (23.10.08), adopted a resolution commemorating the victims of the Holodomor (artificial famine in Ukraine 1932-33) by an overwhelming majority. The EPP-ED Group was one of the initiators for the resolution. The text paid tribute to the millions of Ukrainians who were starved to death during the Soviet collectivization drives of the 1930s, acknowledging this as a 'crime against humanity".

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, today congratulated Latvian Minister of Interior, Mareks Seglins, for his election as Chairman of the Tautas Partija.

Wilfried Martens, the President of the EPP, has welcomed the outcome of last Saturday’s meeting between George W. Bush, US President; Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France and EU Presidency; and José Manuel Barroso, the President of the European Commission.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the leaders of the EPP Member parties called on the EU Member States to reach an agreement on tackling the economic crisis in a coordinated and efficient way.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens has congratulated today Canadian Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) Stephen Harper for his election victory in the country’s parliamentary elections. Harper's Conservatives returned to power with a stronger, broadly based minority government. The EPP and the Canadian Conservatives have established in recent years close bilateral relations.

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will meet on 15 October 2008 in Brussels.

EPP President Wilfried Martens said “yesterday's meeting in Paris with the leaders from the EuroZone was a positive step towards the implementation of an EU coordinated strategy to face the current economic crisis.”

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, today welcomed the recovery plan presented by the European Commission to boost the European economy.

The EPP President, Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Sweden and its Prime Minister, Fredrik Reinfeldt (a member of the EPP) on its ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.

EPP Vice President and French Minister for Agriculture, Michel Barnier, has today welcomed the agreement reached by the EU to reform the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP).

EPP President Wilfried Martens expressed deep satisfaction following today's result of the recent Financial Times (FT) survey on Europe's Finance Minister, as the top nr.1 rank was awarded to Jyrki Katainen, Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Finland, and already Vice-President of the European People's Party (EPP).

The President and the Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez-Isturiz, have today expressed their condolences to the families of the eight miners who died in a coal mining accident in southwest Romania.

On 13 and 14 November 2008, the European People's Party (EPP) held its Political Bureau meeting where traditionally all member parties are represented to officially endorse the Party's decisions.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, reminded today the importance of the Christian values in the political action in Europe.

“Although Christian faith is no longer the only source of inspiration, its presence is ever more essential in giving us the necessary tools to cope with challenges in Europe”, said Martens during a meeting of the Centrist Democratic International (CDI) held in Guanajuato (Mexico).

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens congratulated today Barack Obama for his election victory in yesterday’s US Presidential election:

“I would like to congratulate President-elect Barack Obama for his historic election victory. At a difficult moment for the US (and world) economy, Obama inspired the American people and offered them hope for a better future,” Martens stated.

The President and the Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez-Isturiz warmly congratulated today the new Prime Minister of Romania and President of EPP member-party PD-L, Emil Boc, for being confirmed today in the Romanian parliament. Boc is leading a grand coalition government of the PD-L and the PSD.

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, has welcomed today’s statement by French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the European Parliament and congratulated him on the « excellent EU Presidency which is now drawing to a close ».

The EPP Heads of State and Government along with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will meet on 11 December 2008 in Brussels.

EPP leaders agreed today that the EU needs a workable solution to unblock the Lisbon Treaty in 2009 and called on the European Council to reach an agreement.

On Tuesday 9 December, Antonio LOPEZ-ISTURIZ, EPP Secretary General, gave an interview to INTERFAX -UKRAINE on the occasion of the creation of coalition between EPP sister parties from Ukraine - People’s Union Our Ukraine of Viktor YUSHCHENKO and Batkivzhchina of Yulia TYMOSHENKO.

On the occasion of the funeral of the late Patriarch of Russian Orthodox Church, Alexiy II, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, sent today his condolences to the Russian Orthodox Church and underlined that "it is a big loss not only for Russians but also for Christianity as a whole.”

The EPP Leaders of State, Government and Opposition, along with the Presidents of the European Commission and the European Parliament, will meet on 11 December in Brussels for the EPP Summit.

The Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio López-Istúriz, has today condemned the assassination of Ignacio Uria by the terrorist group ETA, and expressed his condolences to the victim’s family.

The EPP President, Wilfried Martens, has today welcomed the formation of the new coalition Government in Austria, which includes the Austrian People’s Party, a member of the EPP.

In particular, Martens congratulated Josef Proell, acting Chairman of the party, who became Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister, taking over from Wilhelm Molterer.

The results of Romanian Parliamentary elections have been welcomed by Wilfried Martens, President of the EPP Party and Joseph Daul MEP, Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament :

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens,
started today a visit to Washington.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated today the EPP sister – parties DSS and G17PLUS for the results obtained in the parliamentary elections held yesterday in Serbia.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens congratulated this evening Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek for receiving, after a 7-month stalemate, a vote of confidence from Parliament. His center-right government is led by two EPP and EPP-ED Group parties ODS and KDU-CSL.

EPP Secretary General and MEP Antonio Lopez-Isturiz underlined today the great success its parliamentary Group achieved in securing the main positions in the European Parliament for the second half of the legislative term.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated today Hans-Gert Poettering for his election as the new President of the European Parliament.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated today Nicolas Sarkozy for his nomination as candidate of the UMP (Union pour un mouvement populaire) for the upcoming presidential elections in France.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated today Joseph Daul for his election as the new Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament.

EPP President Wilfried Martens applauded today Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa for the successful adoption of the Euro, the common European currency, by Slovenia the first EU member-state to do so since the May 2004 enlargement.

The European People’s Party (EPP) warmly welcomed today the accession of two newest members of the European Union: Romania and Bulgaria.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens welcomed the EU member-states that joined today the zone of the single European currency, the Euro, as well as the member-states that joined the European area for freedom of movement of persons, the Schengen area, a few days earlier. Specifically, as of today, the Mediterranean island-states of Malta and Cyprus join the eurozone, bringing-up the number of participating countries to 15. Also, ten days earlier, 9 EU member-states - the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia – joined the border-free Schengen area, which now includes 24 European countries.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, considers that the EU needs more leadership to achieve all its current goals.

The European People’s Party (EPP) Political Bureau adopted today a document which includes proposals for a more sustainable, efficient and secure future of energy.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, made today the following statement on the political situation in Hungary:

“Based on the unanimous opinion expressed at the Bureau meeting of the European People’s Party in Brussels on 8-9 February, I express my solidarity with the action of FIDESZ MPs and MEPs on 2nd February this year when they dismounted the police cordon at Kossuth square in Budapest.

The European People’s Party (EPP) and the European Ideas Network (EIN) organized today a debate on “Europe’s Energy Challenge” and focused on the supply of energy, climate change and new sources of energy.

The five-day visit of EPP President Wilfried Martens to Washington DC ended with great success, following a series of meetings with high-level officials from the US Administration, members of US think-thanks and foundations, Ambassadors and representatives from the European Union (EU). The visit was hosted by the International Republican Institute (IRI - click here for IRI press release).

With the conclusion of the 50th anniversary festivities in Berlin, EPP President Wilfried Martens responded this morning to Saturday’s unprecedented attack of PES President Poul Nyrup Rasmussen against the EPP and its Summit meeting in Berlin.

The European People’s Party (EPP) celebrated today the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome with an Extraordinary Summit in Berlin, just a few meters from the Branderbourg Gate.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, presented today a Common Declaration of the EPP and the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament on the 50th Anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.

Wilfried Martens, EPP President, congratulated today the Finish Kokoomus leader and EPP Vice President, Jyrki Katainen, for the election results:

The Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, and the President of the European People's Party, Wilfried Martens, hope that the European elections in Romania will be held on the date foreseen,13 May 2007.

The Heads of Government and leaders of the European People’s Party (EPP) reviewed today a document on energy, which was adopted in February by the EPP Political Bureau.

The Presidency of the European People's Party (EPP) has recommended to the Political Bureau to suspend the membership of UDF (Bulgaria).

The EPP heads of State and Government Angela MERKEL (Germany), Jan-Peter BALKENENDE (The Netherlands), Kostas KARAMANLIS (Greece), Jean-Claude JUNCKER (Luxembourg), Fredrik REINFELDT (Sweden), Lawrence GONZI (Malta), Janez JANSA (Slovenia), Aigars KALVITIS (Latvia) and Traian BASESCU (Romania), along with Austrian Deputy Federal Chancellor Wilhelm MOLTERER and Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs Per Stig MÖLLER, will meet on March the 8th at Meise (near Brussels) for the EPP Summit.

The Vice President of the European People's Party (EPP) Michel Barnier has outlined in a recent article in the French press "Four Challenges for our Common Home" the foreign policy priorities of Nicolas Sarkozy if elected as the new President of France. Here is the full text of Mr Barnier's article:

The EPP Heads of States and Governments and the leaders of the EPP Members Parties, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Parliament, will meet on 24th March in Berlin for an Extraordinary EPP Summit to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.

EPP President Wilfried Martens commented today on the endorsement of French Socialist candidate Segolene Royal by the Vice President of the European Commission Margot Wallstrom, which was posted on Monday 23 April, 2007 on her official Commission internet blog.

The President of European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the announcement by the AK party of Turkey – an EPP observer member party – that Abdullah Gul (Turkey’s Foreign Minister) will be its candidate for the Presidency of the country.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated today the leader of the UMP (Union pour un Mouvement Populaire), Nicolas Sarkozy, for his victory in the first round of the presidential election in France.

Joint statement of the the President of EPP, Wilfried Martens, and the Chairman of the EPP-ED Group, Joseph Daul, on the procedure of impeachment of Romanian President:

The President of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko – also the Honorary President of the Ukrainian EPP observer member party NSNU – visited this morning the headquarters of the EPP in Brussels.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the participation of Kokoomus, the EPP member party, in the new Finnish Government and congratulated the Kokoomus Chairman and EPP Vice-President, Jyrki Katainen, for his forthcoming appointment as a Minister of Finance.

The Forum for European Studies (FES) organized on 12th of April 2007 its second panel discussion "Europe, a challenge - vision and reality" on the main topics of the Union's current presidency, featuring Bavarian Minister President Dr. Edmund Stoiber; Joseph Daul, the leader of the EPP-ED-group in the European Parliament; Viktor Orbán, the former Prime Minister of Hungary, as well as the president of the foundation "Forum for European Studies", Dr. Ingo Friedrich MEP.

The European People’s Party (EPP) is closely monitoring the political developments in Ukraine and is concerned that the abuse of power by some political forces ignoring the results of the last parliamentary elections by violating the Constitution has brought the country into a deep political crisis.

EPP President Wilfried MARTENS attended the European interfaith dialogue organized by the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions (CoR) in Rome on 22nd March 2007. EPP Group President in the CoR, Isidoro GOTTARDO, welcomed Wilfried MARTENS underlining the importance for the EPP to get local and regional authorities involved in the dialogue between religions on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.

The President and the Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio López – Istúriz, congratulated today the leader of Partido Popular, Mariano Rajoy, for the victory obtained in the local elections held yesterday in Spain:

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, congratulated today Mart Laar for his election as the Chairman of the newly merged Pro Patria and Res Publica Union (IRL).

Joseph Daul, Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament, welcomed the results of the first European elections in Bulgaria and congratulated the Bulgarian people for their first European vote. "The European Parliament is the only institution of the European Union whose members are directly elected by the citizens. This gives it with a particular responsibility."

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, underlined on Sunday 20th of May the strong link between Europe and Hungary: “while Europe needs a strong Hungary, Hungary needs a strong Europe”.

“We welcome today's decision of Romanian people. The vote confirms once more that Romanians are confident that Traian Basescu is the best person to represent their interests.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the vote of confidence that Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and his government received last night from the Serbian parliament. The new government includes two EPP associate-member parties: Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) and G17PLUS.

The European People's Party (EPP) accepted two new parties: the Hungarian Christian Democratic Party (KDNP) -which will be a full member party- and the VMRO - DPMNE from the Former Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), which will have the status of observer.

The EPP Political Bureau, meeting in Brussels on 15 May 2007, unanimously adopted the following resolution:

Corien Wortmann-Kool MEP has been elected by an overwhelming majority new Vice- President of the European People’s Party (EPP) by the Political Bureau of this organisation.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, offered last night his warmest congratulations to Nicolas Sarkozy for his historic victory in the final round of the French Presidential elections. The President-elect of France is also the leader of UMP, a prominent member-party of the EPP.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, defended today that the European Union (EU) should introduce an environmentally and socially responsible model of economic growth for reducing the effects of the climate change, which is one of the main challenges that the world is currently facing.

The EPP leaders debated today the new Treaty of the European Union (EU) during a Summit held in Meise (Brussels).

Eleven heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) and five of non - EU countries will meet on June the 21st at Meise for the EPP Summit, including the President of the European Council, Chancellor Angela MERKEL (Germany). Moreover, the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel BARROSO and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING, will attend.

The President and the Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens and Antonio Lopez – Isturiz, attended the second Summer University for local and regional media called "Local Media meets Europe – Europe meets local media" organized by the European People's Party (EPP) Group in the Committee of the Regions (CoR) on 12 and 13 June in Brussels.

On 12 and 13 June, the European People's Party (EPP) Group in the Committee of the Regions (CoR) is organizing in Brussels, after great success of its first Summer University for local and regional media in September 2006, the second round of this initiative called "Local Media Meets Europe - Europe Meets Local Media".

The President of the European People's Party (EPP) and former Prime Minister of Belgium, Wilfried Martens, welcomed today "the great victory of the candidate of the CD&V, Yves Leterme, in the elections held in Belgium".

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated Peter van Heeswijk for his election as new President of the CDA (The Netherlands).

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has congratulated the leader of Forza Italia, Silvio Berlusconi, for the victory obtained in the local elections recently held in Italy.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens met this morning at the EPP headquarters Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis (ND) and discussed recent political developments as well as Sunday’s election results in Turkey and the situation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the impressive election victory of AKP, following the political crisis of recent months in Turkey. AKP, who received 46.7% and 340 seats, is an observer-member of the EPP since January 2005.

EPP President Wilfried Martens endorced today the candidature of Ioannis Kasoulides for the Cyprus Presidential elections that will take place in February 2008. Kasoulides -former Foreign Minister and MEP in the EPP-ED Group – is the candidate of EPP member-party DISY.

EPP President Wilfried Martens responded today to the call of the President of the Party of European Socialists Poul Nyrup Rasmussen to confront and expose extremist and militant parties that undermine democracy in European countries.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the election of Mr. Abdullah Gül -currently Turkey's Foreign Minister- as new President of the country.

The European People's Party condemned the decision of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine not to register the candidates submitted by the Yulia Tymoshenko’s Bloc (BYuT) for the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The European People's Party condemned the decision of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine not to register the candidates submitted by the Yulia Tymoshenko’s Bloc (BYuT) for the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The two observer member parties of the EPP, the People’s Union Our Ukraine and RUKH, created a new bloc -“Our Ukraine – People’s Self-Defense”- bringing together 9 parties with democratic and European orientation.

The Convention of the Batkivshchyna Party founded and led by Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine's Leader of the Opposition, decided during its congress in Kiev on the 5th of August, 2007 to apply for EPP observer membership.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfred Martens, has congratulated Erwin Huber for his election as new the Chairman of the German (Bavarian) EPP member-party CSU.

The EPP Prime Ministers and opposition Leaders, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Parliament, will meet on 18th October in Lisbon (Portugal) for the EPP Summit.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has reminded that “in our globalized world the European Union (EU) is the only alternative to assure our economic future, our European identity, our democratic system, the rule of law, the respect and the protection of minorities, our social system and the diversity of cultures and languages”.

The President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed the impressive victory of Nea Demokratia (ND) and Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis in the elections held today in Greece. ND obtained an absolute majority in parliament and 42% of the votes, while the socialist Pasok only 38%.

The European People’s Party (EPP) decided today to withdraw its motion to suspend the membership of UDF (Bulgaria).

The EPP would like to deny the article, published in Mediapool newsagency, on 30 August, stating that "the GERB application for EPP membership is temporarily frozen". This information is false.

Statement by EPP President Wilfried Martens and EPP-ED Chairman Joseph Daul on the Ukraine general elections of 30 September 2007:

“The EPP stresses the great importance of the upcoming general elections, for the strengthening of democracy and for the European future of the Ukraine.

The EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions (CoR) held its extraordinary meeting in Malta on Friday 26 October with the participation of the Prime Minister of Malta, Lawrence Gonzi, and the President of the EPP Group in the CoR, Isidoro Gottardo, amongst others.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens participated on Monday 22 October 2007 in the official presentation of the candidates of the Democratic Party (PD) of Romania that will compete for the European Parliament elections of 25 November 2007. The event took place in Bucharest and was hosted by the Democratic Party of Romania.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, has welcomed the unprecedented results of the elections in Poland and congratulated Donald Tusk, the leader of the Civic Platform – a member party of the EPP - for his victory. Martens congratulated the Polish Peasents Party (PSL) led by Waldemar Pawlak, also an EPP member party that is expected to join a coalition government led by the Civic Platform.

The EPP welcomed this evening the result of today’s referendum in Turkey that approved the direct election of the President of the Republic. 69% of the voters approved the proposal of the governing AK party, an observer-member of the EPP.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, congratulated today EPP Vice-President Alojz Peterle for his victory in the first round of the presidential elections held on Sunday in Slovenia.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, welcomed today the final agreement of the 27 members States of the European Union (EU) on the new reform Treaty.

The EPP leaders called today EU Governments to finalize an agreement on the new Treaty of the EU during a Summit held in Lisbon.

The EPP heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) and non - EU countries will meet on 18th of October in Lisbon for the EPP Summit, along with the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel BARROSO and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, made today the following statement for the upcoming elections in Romania:

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, congratulated members of its member parties, Angela Merkel, Viviane Reding, and Benita Ferrero-Waldner on their success at the European Voice awards

Today, EPP President, Wilfried Martens, joined the EPP-ED Group Chairman Joseph Daul MEP, and two Group members who were representatives for the European Parliament in the Convention which drafted the text, Ingo Friedrich MEP and Iñigo Mendez de Vigo MEP, in celebrating the approval of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (EU).

On 28 November, the EPP President, Wilfried Martens, will participate in the celebration of the approval of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, congratulated HDZ President and Prime Minister of Croatia Ivo Sanader for his victory in the country’s parliamentary elections. He also congratulated the President of the HSS Josip Friscic for a strong showing in his coalition. The HDZ and HSS are associate member-parties of the EPP.

Joseph Daul MEP, Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament, and Wilfried Martens, President of the EPP Party welcomed the results of the first European elections in Romania and congratulated the Romanian people on their first European vote.

Members of the EPP Presidency – including President Wilfried Martens and Secretary General Antonio López-Istúriz – met in Paris with President Nicolas Sarkozy, Minister for Agriculture Michel Barnier, UMP Secretary General Patrick Devedjian, Vice-President of the National Council and former Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, President of the Commission for Foreign Affairs at the National Assembly Axel Poniatowski, Chairman of the Delegation for the EU at the National Assembly Pierre Lequiller, Chairman of the Delegation for the EU at the Senate Hubert Haenel, and UMP National Secretary for European affairs Alain Lamassoure MdPE, to prepare the French Presidency of the European Union (EU), scheduled for the second semester of 2008.

The European People’s Party (EPP) recently approved two documents on tax competition and labour market reform in the European Union (EU), with the aim of making significant contributions to improving the current situation in both fields.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, has welcomed the announcement of the new governmental coalition in Poland comprised of two EPP members parties: the Civic Platform led by Donald Tusk and the Polish Peasants Party (PSL) led by Waldemar Pawlak.

The President and the Secretary General of the EPP, Wilfried Martens and Antonio López-Istúriz, have congratulated the Danish Conservative People’s Party (DKF), a coalition partner of the current centre-right government, on the results achieved in the parliamentary elections in Denmark on 13 November 2007.

Responding to the speech of the President of the French Republic, EPP-ED Group Chairman Joseph Daul MEP has welcomed the open and frank speech delivered by Nicolas Sarkozy.

The former Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Hans-August Lücker, died today at the age of 92 in Bonn. Lücker was one of the founders of the European People's Party and a member of the European Parliament from 1958 to 1984 for the German CSU.

The President of the EPP, Wilfried Martens, and the Chairman of the EPP-ED Group in the European Parliament, Joseph Daul, have congratulated today Yulia Tymoshenko on her election as the new Prime Minister of Ukraine, which was supported by the orange coalition partners: the EPP member-parties, the NSNU and the RUKH (Our Ukraine - People’s Self Defence parliamentary group) and the EPP applicant-party Batkivshchyna (‘Bloc Yulia Tymoshenko’ parliamentary group).

The European People’s Party (EPP), the largest and most influential European-level political party, has welcomed the formal adoption of the revised EU Regulation on European political parties that was signed earlier today by the President of the European Parliament and the Presidency of the European Council.

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, welcomed the agreement recently reached in Bali on climate change.

The EPP leaders today agreed that the new EU Treaty should be ratified and enter into force before the European elections of June 2009.

The EPP heads of State and Government from the European Union (EU) will meet on 13 December in Brussels, along with the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel BARROSO, and the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert POETTERING.

EPP Prime Ministers and opposition Leaders, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Parliament, will meet on 13 December 2007 in Brussels for an EPP meeting.

EPP President, Wilfried Martens, addressed the CDU and its leader Chancellor Angela Merkel, during its annual congress held in Hannover on 3 and 4 December 2007.

Former EPP Vice-President, Wim van Velzen, has been given the mandate by EPP President, Wilfried Martens, to assist in negotiations to reunite the HDZ BiH and HDZ 1990, the two main Croatian political forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), Antonio López-Istúriz, has today strongly condemned the latest attack by the terrorist organisation, ETA, which killed a Civil Guard and seriously injured another in France.