Annemie Neyts-Uyttebroeck (ALDE). – (FR) Madam President, Baroness Ashton, ladies and gentlemen, so far, the debate here today shows clearly, Baroness Ashton, how impossible your task is. Some people have asked you to clearly define your priorities and concentrate on priority actions, while others have asked you questions about everything that is going on around the world and urged you to do everything you can to improve the situation.

However, your task is also inspiring and we support you because together – but above all you and your team, who do the lion’s share – we are laying the foundations for an entirely new common policy: the European Union’s common security and defence policy.

I am one of those who naturally would like the entire world to have realised this already, and I think that it will come to realise it over time. Having said that, I had a somewhat miserable experience along with my colleagues who were also in Charlotte, North Carolina last week during the Democratic Convention: the European Union was not mentioned once during either the Convention or the International Leaders Forum. Mr Brok writes in his report that the United States is our main strategic partner – and that is certainly true – but the fact remains that we were not even mentioned once. That leads me to conclude that we still have an enormous amount of work to do.