Between relations with Africa and the Balkans, the reform of budgetary rules, economic recovery, the geostrategic position of Europe, the maintenance of the rule of law, the control of borders and migration, the order of The next six months are a busy day for the European Union and for France. The priorities drawn by Emmanuel Macron, this Thursday, December 9, for the thirteenth French presidency of the Council of the European Union are numerous.
Doubts are being heard in Europe on the ability of President Macron to carry out all the reforms and all the projects described, this Thursday, December 9, as France’s priorities for its European Semester, because the French presidential election will come. disturb a good half of it. Others point out, on the contrary, that the two events have already entered into conjunction in 1995, the year of the election of Jacques Chirac.
Two useful months lost
In the European Parliament, says our correspondent in Brussels, Pierre Benazet, deputies calculate that the pre-electoral period will cut the French presidency by at least two useful months and for the most pessimistic, it is from mid-March that a first slowdown will occur. The duty of reserve will prevent French ministers from chairing informal meetings, those where they have the most opportunity to push the subjects listed to the rank of priorities. Some argue that a date change could have been achieved: after all, Estonia had to put its first rotating presidency forward by six months in 2017 because of the departure of the British.
Cases already well advanced
But the holding of the French presidential election in spring 2022 could prove to be a minor obstacle for some, who believe that several files presented by Emmanuel Macron are in fact already well advanced. This is the case – for example – for the reform of the Schengen area which must be the subject of a presentation by the Commission next week; this is also the case with the strategic compass (for the future geopolitical orientations of Europe) that the head of diplomacy, Josep Borrell, has already prepared.
Others also point out that much of the job of a rotating EU presidency is actually to seek compromises of twenty-seven more than to make its own point of view heard and, after all, many presidencies have left unfinished files.
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