Cultural diversity is at the heart of the European Union’s policies and actions to facilitate mutual respect and understanding, promote democracy and human rights, contribute to development and peace, within the EU’s borders and beyond.

On the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, we confirm the EU’s commitment to the promotion and protection of cultural diversity at all levels. And, as a global actor, we reaffirm the EU’s stand as a devoted party to UNESCO’s 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

The integration of the cultural perspective in our policies is key, because it will only be through the genuine understanding and respect of the different cultural values and expressions that we will be able to advance globally towards a more sustainable future for all.

Safeguarding, developing and promoting cultural and linguistic diversity and heritage are particularly key objectives of Creative Europe, our flagship culture programme supporting culture and audiovisual sectors in the EU, candidate countries and our neighbourhood. The EU’s commitment to the promotion of cultural diversity was recently showcased with the participation of the EU, for the first time ever, as Guest of Honour at the International Book Fair in Guadalajara, Mexico, in November 2023.

Another concrete example of the EU’s global outreach is the EU-funded project Reviving Mosul and Basra Old Cities implemented in historical urban centres in Iraq, and contributing to economic recovery, resilience, cultural identity, social cohesion and inter-community reconciliation, while promoting young people’s hope for a more prosperous future.

Furthermore, the EU promotes the creation of sustainable and trusted inter-cultural connections world-wide through people-to-people connections, under its Global Gateway investment strategy. We are establishing EU Youth Sounding Boards to bring together, facilitate dialogue and listen to young people, in all their diversity, at the global level and in partner countries. Their inputs are essential to make EU external action even more sensitive to youth and cultural diversity.

The EU will continue making the best of the potential of international cultural relations to better identify and address global challenges. And we will keep supporting a development that is based on respect, trust and understanding, which are necessary to build sustainable and fruitful relations among us all, our civil societies and public spheres, overcoming differences through constructive dialogue, in a spirit of transnational solidarity.