Since Saturday midnight country holds the Presidency of the Council of Europe, which represents the interests of 27 member states facing the Commission and the European Parliament.
Le Monde
France took Saturday 1 January for six months rotating presidency of the European Union (EU) with an ambitious agenda, a Europe “powerful” and “sovereign”, which however may be pushed by the new outbreak Covid of-19 presidential and April.
At midnight ringing, she took over from Slovenia, who chaired the EU Council on 1 July and will sell its turn in the second half in the Czech Republic.
A symbol of this relay, the Eiffel Tower and the Elysee Palace lit up at the same time in blue, color of Europe. The European flag replaced under the arch of the usual tricolor triumph, prompting strong reactions from candidates of right and extreme right presidential. Dozens of other iconic monuments must be adorned with blue throughout France during the first week of January.
The EU Council represents the interests of 27 member states facing the Commission and the European Parliament. The six-month presidency convenes meetings of ministers, sets the agenda and leads the negotiations.
Power of influence
For six months, France will therefore have significant power of influence to advance certain issues and find compromises to 27 even if the exercise, very framed, implies neutrality and sensitivity.
President Emmanuel Macron has set the bar high for the French EU Presidency. “2022 must be the year of a European turning point,” he has launched Friday in his New Year’s greetings. This is to make the “strong Europe in the world, fully sovereign, free his choices and master of his destiny “, he had already stated on 9 December.
ambitions he continues to show since his election in 2017, not without some tense of partners, including Eastern Europe. He himself did not chair the summits or European Councils – a role assigned to the Belgian Charles Michel – but may influence discussions and intervene in crisis situations
.
Now the EU is at a crossroads on a range of issues, from security in Europe – tens of thousands of Russian troops are massed at the gates of Ukraine – the health crisis that darkens again European economic horizon.
Emmanuel Macron can count on the support of the new German chancellor, the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, who will chair his side the G7 in 2022.
In his first address on New Year’s successor Angela Merkel called for a “more European sovereign and strong.” “Our French friends can count on our support,” added the Head of German diplomacy, Annalena Baerbock, in a statement to Agence France-Presse.
A presidency disturbed by the presidential
France has set three priority areas for its presidency: the establishment of minimum wages throughout the EU, the regulation of the digital giants and the creation of a carbon tax on imported products in Europe according their environmental impact.
Emmanuel Macron also advocates a reform of the Schengen area in order to better “protect the borders” European face of migration crises, a topic that will be the heart of the French presidential campaign.
It also intends to put on the table a revision of the budget rules – the famous Maastricht criteria – framing European deficits in order to finance more European investment and growth. And continue to advance Europe’s defense, despite the reluctance of some partners, primarily concerned about the protection of NATO.
This is the 13th six-month rotating presidency exerted by France since 1958 and the first since 2008. The presidential elections in May and parliamentary in June in France, however, will hit the full force, reducing the space-time to act. The tide of Omicron variant will also thwart the agenda of the French presidency – some 400 meetings are planned in France. – at least in January when many meetings pass in distancial
The opposition denounced for its instrumentalization of the presidency by Emmanuel Macron, very likely candidate for re-election even if it is kept far from any announcement.