Hungary takes over EU Council Presidency

Hungary takes over the six-month rotating presidency of the EU from Belgium on 1 July. Prime Minister Viktor Orban will chair the summits of the EU's 27 heads of state and government, and ministers will chair the Council of Ministers.

The presidency's programme, entitled "Make Europe Great Again", lists the following seven priorities for the second half of the year:

• Strengthening the EU's competitiveness
• Strengthening the EU's defence policy
• Delivering a coherent and effective enlargement policy
• Curbing illegal migration
• Shaping the future of cohesion policy
• Promoting a farmer-centred EU agricultural policy
• Tackling demographic challenges

Website of the Hungarian Presidency

The Presidency of the EU Council

The Presidency of the Council of the EU is held by the EU member states on a six-month rotating basis. During these six months, the Presidency chairs meetings and sessions at all levels of the Council and contributes to the continuity of the EU's work in the Council. The member states holding the presidency work closely together in groups of three, known as the trio presidency. This arrangement was introduced by the Lisbon Treaty in 2009. The trio formulates long-term objectives and draws up a joint programme setting out the themes and main issues to be addressed by the Council during the eighteen-month period in question. On the basis of this programme, each of the three countries draws up its own more detailed six-month programme.