Check against delivery

Thank you, and apologies once more for the delay. I know that many of you in the room are perhaps hoping to receive answers on other issues - on Syria, on Turkey - but I think it is important that today we should concentrate on the issue at hand, namely on the European Union's support for the people of Tunisia and their country.  Tunisia is a country which has chosen an open and democratic model which provides a source of hope to the rest of the region, and it is a privileged partner for the European Union, as you are aware. It is in the strategic interest of the European Union and its citizens to have a democratic, resilient and stable Tunisia in a deeply troubled region.

However, Tunisia is facing major challenges: a deteriorating socio-economic situation, serious security threats - also linked to the situation in Libya - and the need to put into practice the achievements of the new Constitution.

Today, in adopting this Joint Communication entitled 'Strengthening EU support for Tunisia' - we have already provided support and continue to do so - the European Union reaffirms its full support for the transition in Tunisia and for its people.

We want to do more, and do it more rapidly and more effectively. This Communication aims to mobilise all the instruments available to the European Union and its Member States in order to help Tunisia to implement the necessary reforms and to meet the aspirations of its people, particularly young people.

Our Communication also calls for determined action by the European Union, providing both enhanced financial cooperation and non-financial measures.

It directly addresses the main axes of the Tunisian five-year development plan. One of the main priorities of that plan is good governance and the reform of public administration.

In our view, socio-economic development is paramount to tackle the high levels of unemployment, particularly among young graduates, and the inequalities across the country and in the poorest regions.

We propose a participative approach which involves civil society and the social partners.

Because, since the revolution in 2011, the European Union has seen the strength of Tunisian society and has mobilised all its political, technical and financial resources to support the people of Tunisia, particularly the young, in the transition.

In recent years Tunisia has made a great effort to draw nearer to and strengthen relations and cooperation with the European Union, which is its main partner.

It is important to highlight that a great deal of progress has been made this year in the negotiations on the deep and comprehensive free trade agreement, association with the Horizon 2020 Research Programme, the opening of negotiations for a Euro-Mediterranean aviation agreement, and the forthcoming opening of negotiations on visa facilitation and readmission agreements as well as in our dialogue and cooperation in the area of security and the fight against terrorism.

So we have established firm foundations for the further development of our partnership and now we must work on their full implementation.

However, an economy cannot develop against a background of long-term insecurity. This is why enhanced cooperation between the European Union and Tunisia in this field is vital as a response to a serious problem which can only be tackled collectively, in a partnership between us and Tunisia and the Tunisian people.

We are also determined to strengthen our cooperation with Tunisia in the area of mobility and migration. We recommend that EU support should focus on the root causes of migration, in particular by promoting Tunisia's socio-economic development.

Negotiations on visa facilitation and readmission agreements as part of our partnership on migration are due to begin on 12 October. Tunisia could be the first country in our neighbourhood to benefit from an ambitious and effective visa facilitation agreement, which I believe is very important.

I would like to conclude by emphasising that the Communication focuses on young people. We want to invest in the present and the future of Tunisia. We often say that young people are the future of their country, but they are its present as well.

We believe that promoting employment and socio-economic resilience, particularly for young people, is still the best way to respond to the root causes of phenomena such as radicalisation and migration.

Against this background, the promotion of the mobility of young people - students, researchers or young entrepreneurs - has a special political value for our relations with Tunisia. By enhancing exchanges between our young people, between Europeans and Tunisians, we want to deliver a message of openness and dialogue between our societies.

So today, with this Communication, with more instruments and more funding, we are investing in the present and the future of the Tunisian people and Tunisia. It is also a substantial and long-term investment in the present and the future of Europeans and Europe.

Thank you.