Poland has made Ukraine, a neighbouring country, one of the priorities of its Presidency of the Council of the EU.
“In view of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and other security threats, the work of the Foreign Affairs Council in the first half of 2025 will focus on maximising support for Ukraine at political, military and economic levels, maintaining current policies towards Russia and Belarus, and strengthening the security and resilience of the EU and its partners”, the Presidency summarises in its programme.
Poland therefore wants to encourage the development of EU-Ukraine relations. “Our aim will be to seek to provide stable military support to Ukraine, including through the European Peace Facility, and to adapt the EUMAM Ukraine military assistance mission to the evolving and long-term needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and to fully exploit the potential of the EUAM Ukraine civilian mission”. It also intends to ensure continued EU support for Ukraine’s plans for a lasting and just end to the war.
Poland wants as well to work to strengthen Moldova’s resilience and assist the country in its reform process on the road to EU membership, and to support the Georgian people’s aspirations to EU membership.
In addition, the Presidency will stimulate discussion on the future of the Eastern Partnership “aiming to update and reinvigorate it, inter alia, by making it complementary to the enlargement process and at the same time having a stronger impact on pro-European reforms in countries that do not aspire to join the EU” and by placing greater emphasis on security.
It will strive to normalise relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and to stabilise the situation in the South Caucasus, “enabling the development of its cooperation with the EU”.
The Presidency also wants to move the enlargement process forward. “We must consolidate reforms in the candidate countries, preserve the EU’s credibility and strengthen European security”, it states. The Polish Presidency will maintain a constructive dialogue with Turkey, taking into account its status as a candidate country and in accordance with the conclusions of the European Council.
Poland also aims to put an end to the escalation in the Middle East, provide humanitarian aid to civilians and stabilise the situation in the region.
The implementation of the EU strategy for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, the development of a global partnership with Africa and relations with Latin America and the Caribbean will also be on the agenda.
Poland hopes as well to strengthen the EU’s energy security, notably through cooperation with the Gulf States and investment in the Global Gateway strategy.
Finally, coordination between the EU and the United States on Ukraine, the Eastern Neighbourhood, China and the Indo-Pacific region, energy policy, new technologies and the connectivity agenda are on the agenda, as is the deepening of relations with the United Kingdom in the field of security and defence.
To see the Polish Presidency programme: https://aeur.eu/f/ewk
To see the provisional agendas for the EU Council’s ministerial meetings in the first half of 2025: https://aeur.eu/f/exk (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)