Portugal’s Secretary of State for European Affairs, Ana Paula Zacarias, unveiled on Thursday 26 November the priorities of the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU, which will begin on 1 January 2021.
For its fourth Presidency of the EU Council after 1992, 2000 and 2007, Portugal wants to simultaneously tackle the current challenges, following the Covid-19 pandemic, but also to prepare for the future. “We need to focus on two main aspects: the immediate response we need to make to the crisis now and, at the same time, we need to have this long-term vision”, Ms Zacarias summarised in a presentation at the Portuguese Presidency web conference organised by theTrans-European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA) and the Portuguese Institute of International Relations (IPRI).
The Secretary of State added that the EU must work on economic recovery and fundamental values. “The economic recovery needs to be addressed in a truly immediate way”, she argued, hoping for a solution on financial instruments by the end of the year.
The Portuguese Presidency is built around five themes for action: a resilient, social, greener, digital and global Europe. According to Ms Zacarias, the EU’s resilience must be based on three pillars, respectively: (1) sustainability, (2) innovation - both related to the digital and green transitions - and (3) public welfare.
For the Secretary of State, with regard to sustainability, beyond the Green Deal and the European Climate Law, the EU must also work on green hydrogen, new forms of energy, connections and sustainable transport. “The year 2021 is the European Year of Rail in Europe, we must make the most of it”, she said. She also mentioned the blue economy and forest and water management.
As far as digital is concerned, Portugal intends to work on the data industry. “We need to catch up with the United States in this area”, Ms Zacarias said. Better connectivity, with 5G and cables linking continents, and “digital democracy” and digital rights being other priorities. “The pandemic has shown that there are many inequalities in access to the digital world, and we need to work on that”, explained the Secretary of State.
Social Europe in the spotlight
The future Presidency also intends to focus on Social Europe. “We must preserve the European social model, study it and see how to strengthen it”, she explained. While the European Pillar of Social Rights is an important achievement, it is only a set of principles, said Ms Zacarias, who called for it to be turned into action. “I hope that this will be the mark of the Portuguese Presidency. It will be the heart of our Presidency to focus on people, the social agenda and social policies”, she promised, explaining that people’s trust had to be regained.
She said that this requires access to education and skills, combating populism and disinformation, and looking at inequalities and public health policies and how the Union can be more effective in this area.
Furthermore, Ms Zacarias considered that all these policy areas should be brought into line with the EU’s external agenda. On this point, she emphasised multilateralism and advocated partnerships with the United States, but also with India, recalling that an EU/India summit would be organised during the Portuguese Presidency of the EU Council, and Africa. “We need to work with the United Kingdom”, the Secretary of State also stressed, adding that it would be a “very relevant partner in the future”. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)