Belgium assumes rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union for 6 months

2024-01-01 18:49:15

Belgium / EU Rotating Presidency

From this Monday, January 1, 2024, Belgium will preside over the Council of the European Union, for a period of six months.

Published on: 01/01/2024 – 17:49

1 min

Under the motto “Protect, Reinforce and Predict“, during his Presidencya Belgium will focus its work on six thematic areas that can be seen in detail on its website page Council of the European Union.

Belgium will assume the Council Presidency at a difficult time. It is a true honor, but also a responsibility.

The evolution of the European Union has never followed a straight path. And it is often in the most difficult moments that the most significant progress is made.

Words from Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Crooduring the presentation of the political priorities of the Belgian Presidency, on 8 December 2023.

Belgium will assume the presidency of the Council for the thirteenth time, succeeding Spainbefore passing on the testimony to the next Presidency, Hungary.

The Presidency of the Council of the European Union is held on a rotating basis by each Member State for a period of six months. During this semester, the Presidency leads meetings at all levels of the Council, thus helping to ensure the continuity of EU processes in the Council.

Three presidencies work together

The Member States holding the Presidency work closely in groups of three, known as “trios“.

This system was introduced by the Lisbon Treaty in 2009.

The trio defines long-term objectives and draws up a common program that defines the themes and main issues to be addressed by the Council over a period of eighteen months.

Based on this programme, each of the three countries develops its own more detailed semi-annual programme.

The current trio is made up of the Spanish, Belgian and Hungarian Presidencies.