Catchphrases

Catchphrases speak volumes sometimes. They can be very useful in presenting complex issues in a simple and familiar manner, in a way easy to remember.

In the last year we spoke quite a lot about the European Union being the largest contributor of development assistance, an influential economic actor which is aiming at strengthening its political presence on the global scene. This latter objective is one of the reasons behind the institutional changes, contained in the Lisbon Treaty.

However, some doubts and the eternally famous question about the EU's telephone number keep coming back. Recently, I have heard in Brussels two catchphrases which might be of help when describing the objectives of the EU when launching the European External Action Service project:

The EU's goal is to go forward from being a PAYER to becoming a PLAYER.

We do not really aim at establishing a single telephone number for the whole EU. What we do want is a SINGLE MESSAGE, to be conveyed by all 27 (more precisely 28) telephone numbers.