MALAGA, Spain, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Leaders of France and Spain called for further and faster European integration, at the 25th bilateral summit here on Monday.
At the joint press conference at the Pompidou Center in Malaga, French President Francois Hollande expressed his vision of Europe.
He said there was a "responsibility to define what the European future will be," explaining member states had to "give another meaning to Europe."
The president looked back at the economic crisis, which he believed did not "simply arrive; it came from lack of regulation...we are not in crisis anymore, we need to look at other issues...at what we want to do together in next 10 years, at what our objectives are and at what unites us."
The French leader admitted that not all countries in the EU shared the same ambitions, but that he wanted to "go further and faster with the countries that want to do so," insisting this did not rule out those who preferred slower integration.
"We don't want Europe to be a place to dominate others, but to be a force for peace and progress at the service of the planet," he expressed.
Both he and Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy highlighted the threat caused by populism and extremism.
Asked about the possible victory of France's far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in the coming elections, Hollande said, "We have to denounce extremism, not just for France, but for other places where extremists could get to power in Europe."
"Their proposal is to leave Europe and close in on themselves. In name of Europe and we have to reject this solution," he said.
In his speech, Rajoy highlighted how the past years of the European Union (EU) has brought peace to a region which had seen "two world wars."
"We should make an effort to dedicate ourselves to what is important to the citizens...the main priorities have to be immigration, the fight against terrorism, security, and to create employment and better look after those who most need it," said the Spanish leader, who added "we want more Europe... the more the better."
Spain and France signed documents on issues of security, fighting terrorism and drug trafficking, energy cooperation, improvements on rail and sea links, as well as university exchanges.
Hollande confirmed he would meet with Rajoy, as well as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, to discuss further and faster integration in Versailles on March 6, three days ahead of the European Council meeting in Brussels.
The meeting ended with a joint statement stating that "Spain and France, two countries who are neighbors and allies...have the responsibility to give a new impulse to Europe."
