The Brief
19 December 2024

Some presidencies are to remember

By Georgi Gotev

How important are the rotating presidencies of the Council of the EU? Journalistic experience shows that some presidencies are to remember, some to forget.

Some EU countries say they aim for a low-profile presidency. Others reach for the sky. Take the first Polish presidency in 2011. At the time, the EU was still reeling from the eurozone crisis, and Poland's optimism and Europhilia were definitely a boon.

Warsaw took the "exciting challenge" of countering a wave of Euroscepticism and convincing other members of the Union that the European project truly is a "great thing."

This is what Donald Tusk, the country's prime minister, at the time, told a group of Brussels journalists in Warsaw on 1 July 2011. He had recently won the elections for the second time since 2007, which was widely seen as good news for the EU.

Fast forward to today, the second Polish Presidency is about to begin and Tusk is once again prime minister.

Although Tusk did not exactly win the elections in 2023, with the Eurosceptic PiS (ECR) coming first, he was the one who managed to form a coalition government. This was – again – considered good news for Europe.

In fact, Tusk served as president of the European Council between 2014 and 2019, navigating the EU through Brexit negotiations and various crises. Because of his wealth of experience, some even started to call him "the new emperor of Europe."

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The Roundup

Agriculture – In a debate on farmers’ well-being on Wednesday (18 December), Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen said that linking farm subsidies to labour standards was a step forward but acknowledged the limitations of the mechanism.

Health – Since October 2023, Israeli authorities have "deliberately" blocked Palestinians’ access to sufficient water needed for health and infectious disease prevention in Gaza, according to a new report by NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Tech – The European Center for Digital Rights (noyb) filed a complaint on Thursday (19 December) with Italy's data protection authority (DPA) against the Irish-based low-cost carrier Ryanair for its verification process, which uses facial recognition.

EU court – The EU's top court on Thursday (19 December) confirmed member states that voluntarily sheltered non-Ukrainians who had a temporary residence in Ukraine could withdraw that protection.

Global Europe – With just over four weeks until Donald Trump returns to the White House, European leaders have started coalition-building to secure continued support for Ukraine in the event of any future ceasefire talks.

Around Europe

Czechia – Russian nationals will have a harder time getting Czech citizenship following an amendment approved by the lower chamber of the Czech parliament on Wednesday, sparking accusations of discrimination.

Hungary – While Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will be praised for his role in Bulgaria's full Schengen membership when he meets President Rumen Radev on Friday, Russian gas is expected to take centre stage.

Italy – Germany and France's economic struggles could negatively impact Italy, Italian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani said on Wednesday, stressing the need to boost Italian industry.

Poland – Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government on Wednesday (18 December) adopted a package of migration and asylum draft laws, including the possibility of temporarily suspending asylum rights, sparking controversy in Poland and abroad.

Look out for

20 December

European Council ends in Brussels, Belgium.

European Policy Centre organises the online conference “The last EU Summit of a turbulent year: Where next?”

Top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas attends the North-South Summit in Saariselkä, Finland.

British Chamber of Commerce in Belgium organises the "Meeting with Paul Speight, Head of Safe and Sustainable Chemicals at DG Environment" in Brussels, Belgium.

Today’s briefing was prepared by Euractiv’s editors Martina Monti and Daniel Eck. Share your feedback or information with us at digital@euractiv.com.

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