EU will emerge stronger, bring hope, Nobel winners say

OSLO - Agence France-Press

President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy. EPA photo

Europe will emerge stronger from its current crisis to again symbolise hope, European Union president Herman Van Rompuy said Sunday in Oslo where the bloc's leaders will collect this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
 
"The EU is going through a difficult period," Van Rompuy said. "I'm sure we will succeed. We will come out of uncertainty and recession stronger than before." "We want Europe to become again a symbol of hope," he added.
 
Van Rompuy, along with European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso and European parliament head Martin Schulz flew into snowy Oslo to accept the prestigious award on behalf of the 27-nation bloc at a ceremony on Monday.
 
The award comes however as the EU seeks a way out of the disarray left by yet another year of economic crisis and political infighting.