COMUNICATION

António Guterres, Winner of the Carlos V European Award

The award ceremony will be held on 9 May, Europe Day, at the Monastery of Yuste. (07/03/2023)

The jury of the 16th edition of the Carlos V European Award, which is granted by the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation, has decided to deliver the prize to Portuguese António Guterres, current Secretary-General of the United Nations “for his proven, extensive and long-standing life career devoted to social commitment, the process of European integration, the promotion of multilateralism and human dignity as the core of his work, addressing global challenges and crises”. This was announced by the General Director of External Action of the Regional Government of Extremadura and President of Yuste Foundation’s Executive Committee, Rosa Bala at a press conference together with the director of Yuste Foundation, Juan Carlos Moreno.

This is the third time that the Carlos V European Award is delivered to a Portuguese politician. On the previous two ocassions it was awarded to José Manuel Durão Barroso, who received the award in 2014, and, before that to Jorge Fernando Branco de Sampaio, in 2004.

It was the anniversary of the war in Ukraine a few days ago, a time that, according to Balas, has demonstrated the will of the Ukrainian people to maintain the territorial integrity of their country, but in addition, “other geopolitical and energy obstacles have joined this European challenge, which shows that it is presently more necessary than ever to value what Europe means, the values it embodies and which it is built on”, she claimed.

In order to face these moments of crisis, the general director defended the European Union as a “peace project” and has called for a “strong and united Europe”, because the answers to the problems must be “unitary and forceful”. According to Balas, António Guterres meets the necessary requirements to be granted the Award because he is a “pro-European man who is committed to multilateralism, peace and justice”.

The jury of the 16th edition of the Carlos V European Award highlighted the work of Guterres at the head of the international organisation by promoting “actions to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic, to the war in Ukraine, to address the climate emergency and achieve ambitious reforms with which to face the challenges of the 21st century”. In this sense, the jury emphasised the determination shown by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to fight climate change by promoting “sustainable development and placing the 2030 Agenda as the global roadmap focused on people and the planet”.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations has in turn sent a message to Yuste Foundation thanking the Award and affirming that he feels privileged to be a member of the list of winners, while recognising that in some way, this Award also pays tribute to the work of the United Nations. In his message, Guterres acknowledged the commendable work of Yuste Foundation in these times of unprecedented crisis for Europe and the world because it “promotes democracy, human rights, peace and sustainable development for all, through research, culture and social integration. It is one of the noblest and most important missions which we can aspire to, and I am thus deeply grateful to you”.

On the other hand, the director of Yuste Foundation, Juan Carlos Moreno ,explained that the solemn ceremony of the Carlos V European Award will be held on the 9th of May, Europe Day, at the Monastery of Yuste, in an event that will be presided over by His Majesty King Felipe VI, who will be accompanied by international personalities.

Yuste Foundation received 27 proposals from seven European Union countries (Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania and Sweden), where twenty-five were the number of eligible proposals received and fifteen the number of candidates nominated to the 16th edition of the Carlos V European Award. In addition, Moreno noted that one hundred and forty-nine letters of support had been received from eight countries (Argentina, Belgium, Colombia, Mexico, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the United States).

ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born in Lisbon on 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician, physics engineer and professor. He is the current Secretary-General of the United Nations since 1 January 2017. On 18 June 2021 he was re-elected for a second five-year term, which officially began on 1 January 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Portugal (1995-2002) and was appointed United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on 15 June 2005, where he served until 15 December 2015, heading the organisation during some of the worst refugee crises in history, including Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq.

CARLOS V EUROPEAN AWARD

Since 1995, the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation awards the Carlos V European Award in order to reward the work of people, organisations, projects or initiatives that, with their effort and dedication, have contributed to the general knowledge and enhancement of Europe’s cultural, social, scientific and historical values, as well as to the process of European construction and integration. During the award ceremony, the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste gathers European and Ibero-American personalities. The Carlos V European Award represents the spirit of building a united, just, equal, united and free Europe.

The solemn award ceremony becomes an act of State supported by His Majesty King Felipe VI, who holds the Honorary Presidency of Yuste Foundation.

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