10 October, 2016

Dear Professor George N. Christodoulou,

Dear Professor Dusica Lecic Tosevski,

Dear Professor Dimitris N. Ploumpidis,

On behalf of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, I wish to thank you for your letter and declaration dated 15 September 2016. I very much appreciate the initiative of The Society of Preventive Psychiatry, the Hellenic Psychiatric Association, The Psychiatric Association for Eastern Europe and the Balkans and the Serbian Psychiatric Association, to prepare an Anti-War Declaration. I am impressed by the fact that you have been able to gather support for your declaration of more than 100 organizations. Civil society has a very important role when it comes to preventing and stopping wars.                                                                                                                                                                                 

The EU and your organisations are fully aligned in their ambition to prevent and put an end to violent conflict. You may have noticed that the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Frederica Mogherini, has presented in June of this year the Global Strategy to guide external action by the European Union. For your convenience I have included a copy of the Global Strategy with this letter. Part of this strategy is the ambition for the EU to act at all stages of the conflict cycle, acting promptly on prevention, responding responsibly and decisively to crises, investing in stabilisation, and avoiding premature disengagement when a new crisis erupts. We need to stay working to prevent and end these conflicts, and the unspeakable violence and human suffering to which they give rise. Hopefully, with the help of your organizations and many more partners, we will be able to make progress in this endeavor.

PLEASE SEE ATTACHED DOCUMENT:
“A Global Strategy for the European Union’s Foreign And Security Policy”
on behalf of the President of the European Commission Mr. Jean-Claude Juncker.

Best regards,

Stefano Tomat

European External Action Service
Acting Head of Division – SECPOL2 Conflict Prevention, Peace Building and Mediation
9A Rond Point Schuman, B-1040 Brussels