The rotating Danish Presidency of the EU Council has published its programme of political priorities for the second half of 2025. Its objective is to increase competitiveness, in line with the priorities of the ‘von der Leyen II’ Commission.
To tackle environmental challenges, the Danish Presidency intends to rely on the ‘Green Deal’ as much as on the ‘Clean Industrial Deal’ (see EUROPE 13588/1). The aim will be to ensure “economic growth [that] does not depend on increased consumption of resources”, according to the Danish Presidency.
For this reason, priority will be given to negotiations “aimed at strengthening the circular economy and increasing the EU’s strategic autonomy by improving the security of supply of key natural resources”. The bioeconomy will also receive particular attention, with discussions within the Council on the EU’s future strategy in this area.
Discussions on the EU’s environmental policy for 2030 will also serve as a compass for this Presidency.
International treaties. Several international negotiations will be held over the next six months, starting with the ‘Plastics Treaty’, which has been on hold since early December 2024 (see EUROPE 13536/14), will resume in Geneva from 5 to 14 August (see EUROPE 13600/3), with the EU aiming to reach an “ambitious treaty” that includes “the adoption of a global target to reduce the production and consumption of primary plastic polymers to sustainable levels”, as agreed by 95 countries in June 2025 (see EUROPE 13657/5). Another priority for the Danish Presidency is the discussions on the ‘European Oceans Pact’.
Other international meetings where the Presidency will ensure “that the EU paves the way for ambitious policies” will be COP30 in Belém, Brazil (10-21 November), and the seventh session of the United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya (8-12 December).
Ongoing negotiations... The Danish Presidency will inherit ongoing inter-institutional negotiations with the European Parliament, including the heated negotiations on the directive on ‘green claims’, which collapsed at the last trilogue, at the end of June, after the European Commission threatened to withdraw the text if micro-enterprises were included in the scope of the directive (see EUROPE 13667/11).
Negotiations on ‘substances to be monitored in water’ could not be completed under the Polish Presidency of the EU Council either, and have been postponed due to requests for exemptions and differences over the implementation timetable (see EUROPE 13662/15). It is up to the Danes to see the text through.
... and negotiations to come. Following the EU Council’s adoption of a “fragile” position on the regulation on ‘end-of-life vehicles’ in June (see EUROPE 13661/8), the Danish Presidency will be responsible for starting negotiations with the European Parliament, which is not expected to adopt its position before September (see EUROPE 13559/11).
The adoption of Council conclusions on the ‘European Strategy for Water Resilience’, proposed by the Commission, at the beginning of June (see EUROPE 13653/7), and the initial discussions on the revision of the REACH regulation will both be awaited.
See the priorities of the Danish Presidency of the Council: https://aeur.eu/f/HFO (Original version in French by Florent Servia)