Brussels, 23/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - The EU's budget for 2014-2020 (the “Financial Perspectives”), breathing new life into the Eastern Partnership, and strengthening the EU's energy policy and common security and defence policy (CSDP) will be the priorities of the future Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU (in the second half of 2011). Warsaw would like to launch a debate on the EU's intellectual capital and strengthen the competitiveness of the EU's single market. The preliminary list of priorities decided upon by the Polish government on 21 July will be submitted to civil society on 1 October and by November, Poland will have submitted its priorities to the other two members of the presidency trio (Cyprus and Denmark).
Financial Perspectives. The EU's budget will be the most important issue for Poland during its presidency, when it would like to “identify the positions” of all 27 member states, explained the Polish secretary of state for European affairs, Mikolaj Dowgielewicz, in an interview with TOK FM radio. Poland wants to define the priorities of the EU's multi-annual budget rather than working out the exact figures. Questions like the relative importance of cohesion policy, reform of the common agricultural policy, investment in energy and the best use of EU funding will be examined, explained Dowgielewicz. Debate will continue into the middle of 2012. Relations with the East. Breathing new life into the Eastern Partnership (generated in May 2009 with Moldova, Belarus, the Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia) will be the second priority. The government is planning to make progress on tangible measures for the Eastern Partnership like easing visa requirements. Dowgielewicz said that Poland would like a visa waiver system to be brought in, particularly for Moldova and Ukraine. It would also like practical decisions to be made about the signing of Association Agreements (negotiations are already under way with three republics in the Caucasus), roadmaps on visa facilitation and free trade agreements. He criticised the “feeble desire for reform” in some of the Eastern Partnership states, particularly Ukraine. The first meeting of the Eastern Partnership friendship group will take place in September 2010 (with Japan, Canada and the United States). Poland has been invited by the Hungarian Presidency of the EU (which will take over from Belgium and precede Poland) to join it in organising the first Eastern Partnership summit in May 2011 in Budapest. Energy security. Poland is planning to hold a debate about options for strengthening the security of the EU's energy supplies due to be unveiled by the European Commission in June 2011. There will be several conferences on the issue and public debate on the future of the EU's energy policy (looking at the competitiveness of the EU's energy market and reducing the carbon footprint). Common security and defence policy. Poland would like to boost EU crisis management capacities and extend cooperation among member states in this connection. Proposals may be unveiled to pilot military cooperation projects between EU member states and Eastern Partnership countries. Poland also wants to hold a debate about boosting liberalisation of the services market, rules governing the financial industry, the EU's intellectual capital and removing obstacles to trade. (A.By./transl.fl)