‘In May 2000 those individuals will be gathered here who will take office as our successors in the construction of Europe. […] Will we leave behind a picture of ten states that indeed have become an island of peace and prosperity after centuries of war, but hesitate to open the door a little to two young democracies that have just freed themselves from totalitarianism? The picture of a privileged Europe that looks on as the third and fourth world sinks in squalor? The picture of a society that permits Japanese robots to replace European workers leaving them unemployed during a great economic crisis?’