HUNGARIAN PRESIDENCY OF THE COUNCIL KICKS OFF
On 1 July, Hungary assumed the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU. The Presidency’s work programme for transport will focus on promoting better connectivity by extending European networks geographically and enhancing links between different modes of transport. In respect of connectivity, the informal ministerial meeting on transport will focus on enhancing connectivity to the Western Balkans.
The Presidency also aims to advance the greening of the transport sector. This includes starting trilogue negotiations with the Parliament on the Rail Capacity Regulation and on CountEmissionsEU while continuing the work of the Belgian Presidency on the Combined Transport Directive. The Hungarian Presidency will also prioritise discussions on cybersecurity, with attention on the EU’s cyber crisis management processes.
The Hungarian Presidency will continue efforts to define an ambitious and achievable intermediate climate goal for 2040. Alongside addressing environmental challenges, one of the objectives of the Hungarian Presidency is to follow up on the conclusions of the comprehensive report on the future of the internal market by Enrico Letta and to set a course of action. In parallel with efforts on the internal market, the Presidency intends to play an active role in the discussion and follow-up of Mario Draghi’s upcoming report on the future of European competitiveness.
The revised Customs Code is another priority of the Presidency. The aim is ‘to continue this substantive debate to ensure that the emerging customs union is future-proof and capable of addressing the challenges of the coming decades more quickly and efficiently.’