Slovenian Transport Minister Radovan Zerjav believes he has more reason than others to be satisfied with the formal launch of Galileo, the future European satellite navigation system, following the adoption, on 23 April, by the European Parliament of the implementation regulation (see page 6). Zerjav talked toEuropolitics about the merits of the compromises obtained, the promised quality of the system and, lastly, the political stakes (this article was first published in Europolitics 3517).

How is a large-scale project like Galileo regarded by Slovenia?

Firstly, I am pleased that an agreement was able to be reached under the Slovenian Presidency. At the start of our Presidency, I was very concerned. A fierce determination and considerable efforts allowed an agreement to be obtained, in coordination with the European Parliament and thanks to its support. Moreover, the chosen solution takes into account the Parliament’s desire to be involved.

One of the finest results is the creation of the interinstitutional group comprising three representatives from the Parliament, three from the Council and one from the Commission, whose mission is one of general supervision in all areas.

The agreement sends a clear signal to all Europeans and to the whole world, which demonstrates that we Europeans mean business and are serious and that we will do everything we can to make Galileo operational in 2013.

Who will ultimately have the power in this project?

The Commission. It is the manager of the entire project and it will be assisted by the European Space Agency (ESA). But the legal composition that we negotiated clearly separates the functions: the Commission is responsible for the construction and management of the system, while the Council and the Parliament have political responsibility. In the interests of proper coordination, the interinstitutional group will supervise and the programme committee, made up of high-level experts sent by member states, will operate under the comitology system.

You did not mention an additional body, the surveillance authority. Why is this?

The authority is an unresolved issue. In the framework of the final agreement, its role was redefined and it will have all the necessary technical competencies. It will be responsible for the security of the programme and the marketing and promotion of applications. Slovenia is a candidate to house this agency’s headquarters.

When will the decision be taken?

We do not know. The Commission must propose a regulation relating to this agency and the question of its headquarters will be debated on this occasion. The decision will probably be made under the French Presidency (after 1 July). Officially, there is no delay. In theory, this could happen in the coming days just as in the coming years. The Commission can propose referring the case to the Council or in co-decision with the Parliament. With regard to its headquarters, it is clear that the agency must be distanced from Brussels, to put it simply, and that Slovenia will strongly defend its candidacy, as will the other candidate countries, I suppose, and there are a total of eleven. The Commission will certainly not waste any time as there are other deadlines to be met.

Now that the project has been launched, how will you present it to the public? What purpose will Galileo serve?

Galileo will do a great deal for European citizens, not only in the field of transport, which is my area, in the optimisation of road, maritime and air transport, but also in agriculture, in the economy in general, covering a broad spectrum of applications. It is a universal, multi-use tool, which is more effective than the American Global Positioning System (GPS). It will be the most precise system in the world.

What is your political evaluation of it?

The most important point is that Galileo affirms and guarantees the independence of Europeans in the use of satellites. It has not been made solely for them, since it is also available to the rest of the world. But nothing outside of Europe will have the power to ‘turn it off’ in its place. It is also because other systems are being developed in the rest of the world and will be in competition with one another that Galileo is a strategic choice. I repeat: independence and competition.