Arrangementsbeskrivelse

Come along Nyt Europa for an opportunity to meet with top diplomats at The French Embassy in Copenhagen. We’ve been invited to an informal presentation & discussion at the embassy on the upcoming French presidency of the Council of the European Union, in the context of two elections in France during the first semester of 2022.

France would like to promote an ambitious European agenda in favor of a sovereign, united and democratic Europe, as expressed by the President of the Republic in the Sorbonne speech in 2017. In line with the work done by the previous EU presidencies and the legislative program of the Commission, France intends to move forward on three priority topics:

- the European Green Deal (Fit for 55), with the goal to agree on the tools to achieve our ambitious goals for reducing net greenhouse gas emissions and carbon neutrality.

- the Digital Single Market, with the negotiations on the DSA and the DMA, which aim to create a safer digital space where the fundamental rights of users are protected and to establish a level playing field for businesses.

- Social Europe, with the goal to promote upward social convergence in Europe, while fully respecting the different national models.

At a time when power rivalries are increasing and crises are multiplying, sometimes in Europe's immediate environment, France intend to strengthen the EU's role in the world, with three geographical priorities, at the crossroads of many strategic and economic issues: the Indo-Pacific region, Africa, and the Mediterranean.

The French presidency of the Council will be important for the trajectory of European politics in many ways as increasing risks relating to e.g., climate and security pushes the EU towards a critical juncture. Therefore, the following years will be important for the shape of the trajectory of the strategic autonomy of the EU.

And what about the Franco-German twin engine now that there is a new government in Germany? And what about the prospects of more cooperation between France and Denmark?