In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, discusses the lively debates within the EPP on the possible exclusion of the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) of Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel, which was accused of joining forces with the Austrian Liberal Party (FPÖ) of populist Jörg Haider to form a government.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, describes the EPP’s changing position on Turkey’s accession to the European Union as well as the relations between the EPP and the Justice and Development Party or AKP (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi) led by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, co-founder of the European People’s Party (EPP) in 1976 and President of the EPP since 1990, makes a first assessment of his already long term as party leader.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, attempts to define the specific role of European political parties in European integration.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, describes how European parties find it difficult to spread their ideas among grass-roots supporters. He also discusses the involvement of national MPs in European questions.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, explains the historic role played by Belgium in the European integration process.

In this interview, Georges Berthoin, Principal Private Secretary (from 1952 to 1956) to Jean Monnet and then to René Mayer during their respective Presidencies of the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community, describes the atmosphere prevailing within the High Authority and the Community administration in Luxembourg in the early 1950s.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, emphasises the need to develop a political union and an economic government for the future of the European Union.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, discusses the role and operation of the European Council and how it has developed since the Lisbon Treaty. He also considers the nature of relations between the Heads of State or Government and describes how Belgium prepared for European Councils.

In this interview excerpt, Wilfried Martens, Belgian Prime Minister from 1979 to March 1981 and December 1981 to 1992 and President of the European People’s Party (EPP) since 1990, discusses the reasons that led the Heads of State or Government to appoint Herman Van Rompuy as President of the Council of the European Union.