The Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU is continuing its preparations for the meeting of Research and Innovation (R&I) ministers on 23 May. The ministers are expected to formally adopt three draft texts concerning the European framework programmes for R&I, the safety of research and the exploitation of research results. The Belgian Presidency has secured working group agreements. It had produced multiple draft texts and edits in order to reach a consensus.
At the same time, the Belgian Presidency has already laid the foundations for the political debate on advanced materials that will occupy the ministers (see EUROPE 13403/11).
Framework programmes
On Thursday 2 May, the Ambassadors of the Member States to the EU (Permanent Representatives) were asked to approve the draft conclusions on the ex-post evaluation of the EU R&I Framework Programme 2014-2020, Horizon 2020 (see EUROPE 13388/37), at their meeting on Wednesday 8 May.
The draft conclusions also put forward considerations to feed into the discussions around the development of the next framework programme, which will succeed Horizon Europe. The working group reached a broad consensus on the draft text.
This work follows the publication by the Commission on 29 January of an evaluation report (see EUROPE 13338/6).
Link to the latest draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/c35
Research security
At their meeting on 8 May, the Presidency and the ambassadors are asked to confirm the agreement reached at technical level on the EU Council recommendation on research security, based on a proposal from the European Commission which was part of a legislative package on economic security (see EUROPE 13335/4).
R&I security issues are all the more important given the tense geopolitical context. The Belgian Presidency emphasised that risks and threats likely to be caused by third parties could affect several strategic sectors. For R&I, risks have been identified in three areas: unwanted transfer of knowledge, foreign interference and breaches of ethics or integrity both in the EU and elsewhere.
The Presidency stresses that research organisations and research funding bodies are the primary bodies responsible for deciding on the terms and conditions of their international cooperation. However, public authorities should consider supporting them, in particular by providing them with the means to make informed decisions and manage risks to the safety of research, while protecting academic freedom.
To this end, the draft conclusions propose a series of actions and principles to be implemented by the Member States and the Commission.
Following two informal tacit approval procedures concluded on 12 and 16 April, the working group reached broad agreement on the Presidency’s third and final revised text. One delegation is still expressing concerns.
Link to the second set of draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/c36
Promoting research
The Belgian Presidency indicated that the latest draft conclusions on strengthening the use of knowledge as a tool for a resilient and competitive industry and open strategic autonomy (see EUROPE 13365/6) had also been accepted by the delegations on 11 March, after an informal procedure of tacit approval in working groups.
Link to the latest draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/c37 (Original version in French by Émilie Vanderhulst)