Former European Commission President Jacques Santer, also a former prime minister of Luxembourg, stopped by New Europe’s NETV booth during the European People’s Party Congress in Warsaw, Poland on April 29 for an interview, reviewing what is going on today in the party and the EU.

Mr President, these are difficult times for any political party. How do you view the working of the Barroso administration for handling what seem to be intractable problems?

As you said, it is a very difficult time for all political parties, but I think for the EPP-ED it is also a challenge, that also our fundamental doctrine from the social market system is coming back and I think that is a chance also for the European economy that is to stick better with the social market economy and within its parts. I think it is coming up again, our fundamental believing in Euro, as our market economy and social market economy seems to be the intermediate face between the liberal system, capitalism and socialist system.

So you still have faith in the capitalist system?

I think there is no alternative to reform the market system, but nevertheless we have to deal with the coming back to the fundamentals of the social market economy. That’s seems to be very important nowadays.

Do you support President Barroso to continue his mandate?

It is not up to me. But as the Commission was in the right direction, I hope and I expect that European Union would be able to speak with the one voice. After the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, I hope that it will come into the force and it should be also with much more power and play our vote as being an actor on the political level in the multipolar role. I think there is Europe voice. Europe has to stand, it is important, and we have now European Union with 27 Member States, 500 million inhabitants, we are a big force but we have to valorise all these political potentialities which we did not yet.

Some people like to draw a comparison between European Union and United States, United States of Europe. The United States of 50 states are all Americans. Here you have 27 different nationalities and Eurosceptics. The Lisbon treaty has been voted down in Ireland, and Eurosceptics are currently heading EU presidency. How do you draw them together?

-Our view was never to be United States of Europe like United States of America. We’ve always believed it is a nation’s state. Here in Poland you see it is a long history and we have our own identity, we would remain Polish, Luxembourger, and French and unify Europe. Where we have to join our forces is in diversified manner but to maintain our identity, it’s said it is diversity in Europe.

Yet, at the same time, do you think it is the overarching common denominator that there is such a thing as European values, no matter what your nationality is?

Yes, I think we have common values and we have to stick to these values. We as an EPP-ED, we always have promoted these values in all Europe. And I am very glad as a former president of the European Commission that for the first time since the 15th Century we have united our continent in peace and freedom.

Beyond the economic questions, do you think that you will eventually have ratification of the Lisbon Treaty?

I hope so and I’m quite confident that our Irishmen will ratify the Lisbon Treaty in the second wave and we also want new constructions, new institutions to strength our force, also international. It is very important that we can speak with one voice. And that was also the difficulty nowadays in Europe that we have not unique voice that we speak with 27 voices sometimes.

Do you think you can stand up to the Socialists? They say you are to blame for what’s happening economically, the centre right

Yes, I think economically we have to overcome our difficulties, what is quite clear but we have to work very hard that all the structure reforms and all our Member States will come to an end. And that I think we have many potentialities in the single market with more as I said 500 million inhabitants and we should valorise all these potentialities politically, but essentially also economically.

A lot of people blame what is happening in the world with a single attitude - greed. Was it greed that almost broke down the system?

I do not think so. But we have to come back, as I said before, to our fundamentals. I think supervision committees overestimated their forces and now we are coming back to more fundamental work, which we have to do for our future. I think Euro as European Union would have a chance in a new world order.