Romania has held the rotating presidency of the EU Council since 1 January. Its digital policy agenda is not revolutionary: in view of the published documents, Bucharest should focus on completing ongoing legislative issues such as copyright reform and intermediation services (P2B).
In any case, digital policy is not an isolated priority in Romania's work programme (to be confirmed on 15 January) or in that of the trio presidency (Romania, Finland and Croatia).
Romania has set itself the fourfold objective of acting for a Europe of convergence, security, values and a Europe as a global player (see other news). In her speech to the Romanian Parliament in mid-December, Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă presented digitisation and connectivity as the "main factors for the competitiveness of European industry". However, given the proximity of the European elections, Bucharest's room for manoeuvre is relatively limited. In its work schedule, the new Presidency announced that it would target two general approaches at the Telecommunications Council on 7 June: one on the confidentiality of electronic communications (ePrivacy) and the other on the European Centre for Industrial Competence, Technology, Research and Cybersecurity (see EUROPE 12152). For the rest, Bucharest will have to continue and close the inter-institutional negotiations on copyright (see EUROPE 12161), on relations between platforms and companies (see EUROPE 12154) and on sales contracts (see EUROPE 12161).
In the longer term, the work programme of the new trio of rotating presidencies - this time Romania, Finland and Croatia - announces the continuation of work "towards a more integrated services market, a digital economy, notably by completing the digital single market, an economy of platforms and data, an appropriate digital infrastructure and an operational framework to support the digital transformation of European industry and business and to unleash innovation by capitalizing on artificial intelligence". Also noteworthy is the reference to the "real need" to adapt EU tax systems to the digital age. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)