The President of the European Commission and the President of the Government met in Brussels on Thursday morning to start the launching programme of the Azores as European Region of the Year 2010.

After the meeting, which took place at the European Commission, Durão Barroso - expressing its satisfaction with the distinction now awarded to the Azores, for which he congratulated Carlos César - stated that is event confirms the importance of outermost regions within the European Union.

“The Azores are nowadays the Portuguese region that is effectively managing structural funds,” the President of the European Commission said, adding that at the time when the future EU budget is being prepared, it is important to consolidate the principle that the outermost regions deserve special attention.

“Hence, I believe that is quite useful that the Azores take on a leadership role in the context of the outermost regions in order to reinforce the importance of the outermost regions in the future of the European Union, Durão Barroso stated, repeating his congratulations to Carlos César for the appointment of the Azores as European Region of the year and for “what he has been achieving in the Azores.”

For the president of the Government, this distinction is valuable for a better understanding of the Azores, providing better information to the EU decision-makers at a time when there is a new College of Commissioners and a European Parliament with renewed and reinforced powers.

The set of initiatives that will be developed under the European Region of the Year 2010 will disseminate, in a more impressive way, the European ideal and reality in the Azores.

Although some recent decisions of the European Union have been unfavourable for the Azores in sectors such as agriculture and fisheries, the President of the Regional Government said that, in the overall context, he is “very pleased with the manner how the European Commission has undertaken the support and understood the phenomena associated to the outermost regions.”

For Carlos César, “from the Azores point of view, from all the outermost regions as well as from the point of view of regional policy, we have the right president of the European Commission, who deserves our support.”