The Czech Prime Minister, Petr Fiala, presented, on Wednesday 15 June, the priorities of his country’s second Presidency of the Council of the EU, which will begin on 1 July (see EUROPE 12942/27).
Against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and its consequences for the EU, Prague highlights five priorities: - managing the refugee crisis and Ukraine’s post-war recovery; - energy security; - strengthening Europe’s defence capabilities and cyberspace security; - the strategic resilience of the European economy; - the resilience of democratic institutions.
The Czech Presidency of the EU Council thus wants to support the EU’s efforts to defend Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity by using all EU instruments and programmes, including the strengthening of sanctions.
It also states that the EU should take all necessary measures to help manage the wave of Ukrainian refugees. An important focus will be the budget. For the Czech Republic, refugee management “will require the mobilisation of all available resources and expertise as well as their coordinated use”.
“Another important task of the Czech Presidency will be the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, focusing on restoring critical infrastructure, ensuring basic services, strengthening resilience and economic recovery and stability in Ukraine”, the programme says.
The Czech Presidency also states that emphasis should be placed on the EU’s energy security issues, “which are currently more pressing than the energy transition”, and on the accelerated implementation of REPowerEU. While ‘Fit for 55’ creates the basis for decarbonisation, “the Czech Presidency will focus especially on thorough implementation of the main short-term objective, i.e. remove dependence on Russian fossil fuels”.
The Czech Presidency will also focus on energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. Prague emphasises the role of nuclear power in ensuring the EU’s energy security and meeting the EU’s climate objectives.
Moreover, for it, the transition to carbon neutrality must be accompanied by effective social measures.
The Czech Presidency of the EU Council also wants to work on strengthening Europe’s defence capabilities and cyberspace security as well as the fight against disinformation. This will include the implementation of the ‘Strategic Compass’.
According to the Czech Presidency, in order to strengthen the EU’s strategic resilience, it is essential to promote technological competitiveness on the basis of its own production capacities, while at the same time deepening free trade with democratic states in the world (Australia, New Zealand or Latin America). Prague also promotes the deepening of transatlantic cooperation in the framework of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC).
Stressing that the implementation of the green and digital transitions must promote convergence towards the most developed regions, Prague claims that, at the same time, the development of the skills of Europeans needed to adapt to changing circumstances must be supported. In addition, the internal market needs to be further deepened, especially in the area of services and the digital economy, while improving the business climate.
Finally, the Czech Republic intends to focus on strengthening the resilience of institutions, which “have a major influence on maintaining and developing values of democracy and the Rule of law in the EU”. These include transparent financing of political parties, independence of the mass media and open dialogue with citizens, especially young people.
During the Presidency, 320 events will be held in the Czech Republic, including an informal summit in the autumn and 14 informal ministerial meetings.
See the programme: https://aeur.eu/f/259 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)