Poland is taking over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, with its presidency set to be officially inaugurated on Jan. 3.

The transition has been widely welcomed given Hungary’s controversial six-month tenure at the helm.

Writing on X, Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrii Sybiha, wrote: “As friendly Poland begins its second EU Council Presidency, we count on Poland’s leadership, principled stance and decisiveness. I wish every success to Poland in strengthening Europe.” Poland previously led the EU Council in the second half of 2011.

This time, in line with the motto “Security, Europe!”, the Polish Presidency will support activities aimed at strengthening European security including, among other areas, those relating to external, internal, information, economic, energy, food, and health security.

The Presidency of the Council of the EU rotates among EU member states every six months. Representatives of the country holding the presidency are responsible for setting the agenda for meetings of the council’s individual bodies and conducting negotiations among member states.

Over the next six months, Poland is set to host over 300 official meetings, including 22 informal councils of EU ministers.

The first on the agenda will be a meeting of education ministers scheduled for Jan. 21-22, followed by a meeting of justice and home affairs ministers on Jan. 30-31.

Poland, however, will not host an informal summit of EU leaders. Instead, this will be held in Brussels on Feb. 3.

Nearly 200 cultural events have been planned during the Polish presidency.

The first one, a gala concert in Warsaw on Jan. 3, will symbolically inaugurate the Polish presidency. It will be attended by the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, and a delegation from Ukraine.

The Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU coincides with the start of a new institutional cycle in the EU. The composition of the new European Commission was approved by the European Parliament at the end of November, and the first summit under Costa’s chairmanship took place in mid-December.

Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka, the deputy minister for EU affairs, told PAP that the EU plans for the next five years are in the making.

“Our presidency will therefore be an opening presidency,” she said. “Hence, we will not fight for how many cases we will close, but for how many we will set a new tone.”

Aside from strengthening the security and resilience of the bloc, the Polish presidency will also seek to raise Europe’s economic competitiveness.

“We will strive to avoid so-called overregulation. We remember the Draghi report and other signals that indicate that an excess of regulations can harm us more than help us,” Sobkowiak-Czarnecka said.

Writing on X, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said: “I welcome the Polish presidency’s focus on our Union’s security, in all its dimensions.

She added: “We are going to launch many important initiatives in the first half of 2025, so I’m grateful to have Poland’s determination and European spirit by our side.”

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