"Making Europe Great Again": Hungary takes over the Presidency of the Council of the EU
On July 1, Hungary takes over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union for a period of six months under the motto "Making Europe Great Again", reported a BGES reporter
Illegal migration, the future of the bloc's agricultural subsidies and strengthening European defense are some of the topics the country has chosen to focus on.
Minister of European Affairs János Boca indicated that the Hungarian Presidency will have seven main priorities:
- adoption of a new European deal on competitiveness;
- strengthening of European defense policy;
- consistent and merit-based expansion policy;
- stop illegal migration;
- shaping the future of cohesion policy;
- farmer-oriented agricultural policy of the EU;
- and addressing demographic challenges.
"We take the presidency in a very difficult environment: war next door, the threat of falling behind our global competitors, security problems, illegal migration, natural disasters, climate change and demographic challenges," Boca explained in June.
The Presidency will last from July 1 to December 31, 2024 and will include work with the new European Parliament and European Commission. The country chose a logo inspired by the Rubik's Cube, an iconic invention of the Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernjo Rubik. The cubes symbolize the member states, the complexity of European issues and the ingenuity needed to solve them.
Budapest underlines that the Union is lagging behind its global competitors, which is why it is vital to improve productivity and competitiveness and boost growth.
In this regard, the adoption of a New European Competitiveness Deal is a key priority.
The second objective, the strengthening of European defense policy, is also essential. It should be achieved as a response to ongoing and emerging conflicts in Europe and the world. That is why the EU needs to significantly improve its defense capacity and its ability to respond to international crisis management in order to guarantee its security.
The third priority regarding EU enlargement is to make this policy balanced, credible and merit-based. The plan pays serious attention to the European perspective of the Western Balkans, further expanding and deepening cooperation with these countries within the framework of the EU-Western Balkans Summit and the European Political Community. Budapest confirmed that among the priorities is the achievement of a positive decision on the abolition of Schengen land borders for Bulgaria and Romania by the end of the year.
As for migration pressure (4th top priority), it has been a challenge for the EU and individual countries for several years. Finding appropriate solutions requires closer cooperation with countries bordering the EU, with key countries of origin and transit, and curbing illegal migration and human trafficking.
Based on its fifth priority, the Presidency aims to shape the future of cohesion policy, as there are still significant disparities in development between Member States and within regions. More than a quarter of the EU's population lives in regions that do not reach 75% of the Union's average level of development. The convergence of these regions will require the full use of the EU's potential for competitiveness and the proper functioning of the single market.
The sixth priority, the EU's farmer-oriented agricultural policy, focuses on securing the livelihoods of European farmers, which are threatened by climate, economic and other challenges. That is why the Hungarian Presidency encourages the Agriculture and Fisheries Council to guide the new Commission in formulating the rules of the Union's agricultural policy after 2027 for competitive and sustainable crisis resolution.
The final and seventh objective is to respond to demographic challenges due to the aging of European peoples, unsustainable social security systems and labor shortages. The Presidency will take note of the Commission's demographic toolkit published in October 2023, which provides a good basis for future policies.
The smooth functioning of the rotating presidency of the Council is ensured by troika presidencies, where successive presidencies cooperate to ensure continuity and possible overlap of objectives. The current troika consists of Spain (July-December 2023), Belgium (January-June 2024) and Hungary (July-December 2024), each of which has drawn up a troika program before the start of the respective period. This programme, among other aspects, is aimed at strengthening the EU's global competitiveness, addressing the demographic challenges facing the Bloc, strengthening international partnerships, multilateral cooperation and security in all dimensions, such as increasing the EU's security capacity and the defense.
From July 1 onwards, Hungary faces a difficult and challenging period that can bring decisive results. Hungary's slogan for the presidency - "Make Europe Great Again" - has often been criticized for copying Trump's 2016 campaign slogan - "Make America Great Again". However, according to Hungarian Minister for European Union Affairs János Boca, "this is a reference to an active presidency" and "the message expresses the expectation that together we should be stronger than separately, but we should be allowed to remain what we are , when we come together. It also expresses the idea that Europe is able to become an independent global factor in our changing world." I BGNES
