SPACE POLICY : GMES FINANCING CONTINUES TO DIVIDE MEMBER STATES.

• Position: Global Monitoring for Environment and Security

Does the EU's Earth monitoring programme known as Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) still have a future? The question seems relevant given that the Council is more divided than ever over the question of its financing, and that the European Parliament has clearly stated its opposition to an intergovernmental programme (financed "from the outside"), as proposed by the European Commission. The member states' ministers met, on 21 February, for the Competitiveness Council and reiterated their respective positions: some favour a reinsertion of this programme in the Community budget, while others would prefer the Commission's proposal.

The Danish Presidency is being cautious, and above all is aware that it would be unrealistic to expect an agreement at this stage of the debate. Thus, the Presidency had given up the idea of presenting draft conclusions on the subject to the member states. Instead, it was another non-conclusive exchange of ideas, during which 12 member states said they were in favour of reintegrating the GMES into the next multiannual financial framework 2014-2020 (Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, Finland, the UK, France, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Spain). These states based their position particularly on the necessity of ensuring that GMES has a long-term perspective, which is crucial in view of the heavy industrial investments the programme involves. Moreover, on an intergovernmental' level, the member states know that in November they will have to face demands of this type from the European Space Agency (ESA). Lastly, the 12 states argued...