The Czech Minister for European Affairs, Mikuláš Bek, presented the priorities of the upcoming Czech Presidency of the EU Council on 28 April at the meeting of the Bureau of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in Prague.
Under the slogan ‘Europe as a task’, according to a speech by Václav Havel, the Czech Presidency should focus in particular on the management of the refugee crisis and the recovery in Ukraine with the adoption of an approach combining economic assistance and structural reforms in Ukraine and support for a standard procedure of candidacy to the EU, the EESC said in a statement.
The incoming Czech Presidency also wants to put the spotlight on energy security in Europe, working for a mechanism to ensure fair sharing of energy sources between EU Member States and stepping up investment in renewable energy.
Strengthening European defence capability and cyberspace security with complementarity between the EU and NATO is another priority.
Finally, the strategic resilience of the European economy, by strengthening innovation and competitiveness and reducing dependence on hostile regimes, and the resilience of democratic institutions by focusing on media freedom, transparency of political party funding in the EU and the rule of law, are priority topics. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)