The EU and the Sustainable Development Goals: Delivering on the 2030 Agenda

First Vice-President Frans Timmermans on Tuesday addressed – on behalf of the European Union – the UN Summit on the Sustainable Development Goals, reaffirming the EU’s strong commitment on accomplishing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development towards a peaceful and prosperous world, with human well-being on a healthy planet at its core. In his speech, First Vice-President Timmermans said: “The European Commission has already pledged to deliver a comprehensive European Green Deal. Our ambition is to make the EU the first climate neutral continent in the next three decades, step up biodiversity protection and restoration, zero pollution in our continent, transform our entire food system, from farm to fork, move to a fully circular economy; and make our transport systems entirely clean and more intelligent.” In his speech, he also added: “We must stand up for multilateralism. We are one people, one race – the human race – living on one planet. Let’s be bold and let it be known that globalism is in fact enlightened patriotism.” In the margins of the Summit, the EU also signed a joint declaration with ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) countries, underlining commitments in support of the Sustainable Development Goals.