In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997, looks back on the two major successes of the 1993 Belgian Presidency: firstly the conclusion of an interinstitutional agreement with the European Parliament on the 1993–1999 financial perspective, and secondly the ensuing distribution of structural funds, particularly thanks to the input of Willy Claes, Belgian Foreign Minister, and Jacques Delors, President of the European Commission.

In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997, describes the essential role played by the 1993 Belgian Presidency in establishing a common position in the Uruguay Round international trade negotiations.

In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997, emphasises the remarkable role played by Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene in the negotiations on the distribution of the seats of the European Central Bank (ECB) and other EU bodies, and describes the institutional reform that would culminate in the Treaty of Amsterdam.

In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997, particularly attributes the success of the 1993 Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union to the quality of the people involved, their good working relationship, a strong European conviction and an ability to compromise.

In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997, describes the circumstances surrounding John Major’s veto on the appointment of Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene as President of the European Commission at the Corfu Summit in June 1994. He also looks back on the possibility that Étienne Davignon, former Belgian Member of the European Commission, might have become President of the Commission in 1981 or in 1985.

In this interview excerpt, Philippe de Schoutheete, Belgian Permanent Representative to the European Union from 1987 to 1997 and a potential candidate for the post of Secretary-General of the Council following the 1993 Belgian Presidency, admits that he would not have turned down this role had it been offered him.