STATEOF THE
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LETTER OF INTENTTO PRESIDENT ROBERTA METSOLAAND TO PRIME MINISTER PETR FIALA#SOTEUSTATE OF THE UNION 2022
LETTER OF INTENTBrussels, 14 September 2022

Dear President Metsola,
Dear Prime Minister Fiala,
It is just over 200 days since Russia’s brutal and cruel war of aggression against Ukraine started.
200 days in which the people of Ukraine have suffered so much – yet shown so much courage
and resolve. 200 days of united, unstinting and unwavering support from the people, nations andinstitutions that make up our European Union.
What is at stake here is about Ukraine. But it is also about what the European Union
stands for: freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law and all the values that
constitute our foundations.
So as we gather for this year’s State of the Union debate, we jointly reaffirm our commitment tosupporting Ukraine in every way possible. And we double down on our support to all
Europeans who are facing difficulties as people and companies look to make ends meet as
the cost of living becomes more expensive, having so recently faced the impact of the pandemicand the lockdowns.
This is why supporting Europeans through these testing times will be the Commission’s firstpriority in the year ahead. In this spirit, the Commission is putting forward a series of proposals
to alleviate the impact of the energy crisis on those households and businesses most in needand help them to adapt. This is the latest in a number of measures to reinforce our resiliencesince the start of the war, in particular in ridding ourselves of our energy dependencies. Through
REPowerEU, we accelerated the work for diversifying supply away from Russian fossil fuels,
accelerating the roll-out of renewables, promoting energy savings and increasing our storage
capacities.
Since the onset of Russia’s aggression, the European Union has shown how swiftly and how
strongly it can respond when it acts together. We adopted rapid and hard-hitting sanctions withmany of our global partners, which are now biting hard for Russia’s economy and industry. AsTeam Europe we have provided more than 19 billion euros in financial assistance to Ukraine,
without counting military support. We activated the Temporary Protection Directive grantingUkrainian refugees’ access to jobs, housing, education and healthcare across the EU. We took
action to facilitate trade and established Solidarity Lanes to help Ukrainian exports andsafeguard global food security. And, historically, we also granted candidate status to Ukraine andMoldova to open up their path to our Union. Europe has shown in the last year that is ageopolitical Union – and we must continue to show leadership, working with our partners across2STATE OF THE UNION 2022
LETTER OF INTENTthe world. This also includes strengthening our resilience and security by strengthening ourcybersecurity and stepping up our work on defence.
In the year ahead the best way to deal with these pressing challenges is also to stay thecourse on the plan we commonly set out for this mandate. The major digital and green
transformations we embarked on together have only taken on additional importance as we havegrappled with pandemics, lockdowns and now a war on our border. This is about building abetter future for the next generation and making ourselves more resilient and more prepared forchallenges to come.
This starts with implementing what has already been agreed. This includes implementing thelandmark agreements on the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act which saw the EU
take global leadership in regulating the digital space to make it safer and more open. We willcontinue looking at new digital opportunities and trends, such as the metaverse. It also means
continuing the work on investment and reforms through NextGenerationEU, of which 700bn
EUR remains to be invested in the years ahead. Similarly, we must continue to use the power ofthe EU budget to ensure it best supports people and the economy. Looking ahead, we must also
assess how COVID, the war and their spill-over effects is affecting our long-term budget. To thisend, we will put forward a mid-term review of the long-term budget in the year ahead.
It is essential we continue our work to find agreement on legislative proposals theCommission has already presented. We want to thank the European Parliament and Council
for their cooperation and efforts to agree so many urgent proposals with such speed – whether
on COVID-19 certificate, digital rules or the minimum wage. We must speed up this approach,notably on files key to the European Green Deal and to reaching our climate neutrality goals.
We will also put forward a number of targeted new proposals that are essential to responding toshort term challenges or our long-term objectives. Given the need for the co-legislators toprioritise the adoption of proposals in the year ahead, the list focuses on action where it is mostneeded. The list below highlights key initiatives for 2023. It is based on our discussions with theEuropean Parliament and Council and will be complemented by the upcoming Commission
Work Programme and continued interinstitutional dialogue.
The 2023 Commission Work Programme will be also largely inspired by the outcome of theConference on the Future of Europe. This reflects not only our shared commitment to better
listening to the expectations of citizens but also the resounding success of the Conference, bothas an exercise in participative democracy, and as a way to improve our policy making. The list
below includes proposals stemming directly from the citizens’ recommendations, such as an
initiative on mental health – one of the new areas which the Conference asked us to work on.
We will include Citizens’ Panels in our policy making toolbox so that they can make3

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recommendations before certain key policy proposals, starting with the upcoming work on foodwaste. Building on the success of the European Year of Youth, one third of participants will be
young people.
For Europe – now more than ever - solidarity is destiny. The more we stand together, themore unity we show, the more we can emerge from the year ahead as a stronger Union and thebetter we can prepare the world of tomorrow. This will be our collective mission in the year andyou can count on the Commission to work with you every step of the way.

Ursula von der Leyen

Maroš Šefčovič4

STATE OF THE UNION 2022
LETTER OF INTENTKEY NEW INITIATIVES FOR 2023
Initiatives that directly follow up or indirectly contribute to a proposal of the Conference of theFuture of Europe are marked with an asterisk (*).

A European Green Deal•

Revision of EU’s internal electricity market rules•

Proposal to create EU Hydrogen Bank•

Revision of waste framework to reduce waste, including food waste, and the environmental
impact of waste management *•Legislative proposal on plants produced by certain new genomic techniques *•Revision of animal welfare EU legislation *A Europe fit for the digital age•

European critical raw materials act *•SME Relief Package, including Late Payment Directive•

Initiative on virtual worlds, such as metaverse•

Patent Licensing package•

Legislative proposal on the screening and registration of asbestos in buildings *•Proposal for European Year of Skills

An Economy that Works for People•Mid-term review of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 *•Economic Governance Review•

Legislative proposal on a second set of new own resources *5

STATE OF THE UNION 2022
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Legislative proposal on Business in Europe: a framework for income taxation ‘BEFIT’ *•Data Access in financial services *•Legislative proposals on establishing the digital euro *A Stronger Europe in the world•

EU space strategy for security and defence *•New Agenda for Latin America and the Caribbean•

Update of the EU maritime security strategy•Updating the human rights sanctions regime

Promoting our European Way of Life•

A comprehensive approach to mental health *•Recognition of qualifications of third country nationals•

Legislative proposal on the digitalisation of travel documents and the facilitation of travel•

Revision of the combating child sexual abuse Directive•

Initiative on Cybersecurity Skills Academy

A New Push for European Democracy•

Defence of democracy package, including an initiative on the protection of the EU
democratic sphere from covert foreign influence•

Anti-corruption package•

Legislative proposal on a European disability card *6