The risks are obvious: Europe is lagging behind in competitiveness compared with China and the US, and has been for a long time. There is a risk that companies will find Europe not a sufficiently interesting place to be, he says in the rain outside the 16th-century Alden Biesen castle.
Shortly before that, host and council chairman António Costa set his priorities for the informal reflection meeting, which can best be described as brainstorming:
Costa wants to find ways to deepen the EU's single market and eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy. European entrepreneurship should be boosted, which requires a thriving capital market. And he wants to move forward with "proactive" trade policy and give private corporate investment a boost.
Tear down barriers?
The reflection meeting takes place in light of an assertive China, a US threat of punitive tariffs and Russia's offensive war in Ukraine, which has been going on for almost four years. There is consensus that the EU must stand firmer if it is to be able to handle, for example, the whims of US President Donald Trump - but not everyone agrees on how to get there.
In addition to more free trade agreements with more parts of the world, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, among others, is advocating an energy union and a "large and deep" common capital market. In a speech ahead of the meeting, she said that the internal market's "barriers must be torn down one by one."
"That is why next month we will propose a 28th regime. We call it EU Inc," she said in the EU Parliament.
In all EU countries
The 28th regime has been discussed for some time in the EU. It can be described as a simplified regulatory framework that makes it possible for entrepreneurs and companies to operate in all 27 EU countries.
Such a proposal is likely to be complex to get through, given the national labour laws, traditions and agendas of the member states. Kristersson notes that there are likely to be a lot of "various objections", but adds that it will only be possible to see whether these can be harmonised after the proposal has been presented.
Similar ideas have been put forward by top Italian economists Mario Draghi and Enrico Letta, who have published reports on Europe's competitiveness and were invited to Alden Biesen to speak to leaders.
On Thursday, EU heads of state and government will meet for an informal reflection meeting at the invitation of Council President António Costa.
The meeting takes place at the 16th-century castle of Alden Biesen in eastern Belgium.
The theme is competitiveness, how to strengthen the EU in a challenging geopolitical environment.
Source: European Council
