Prime Minister Sanna Marin will attend the European Council meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday 10 and 11 December and will take part in the Euro Summit on Friday. The meeting will focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, security issues and external relations.
In connection with the European Council, the EU leaders may also discuss the recovery package agreed on at the July European Council and its rule of law mechanism, which has caused the veto of Poland and Hungary. The meeting will also likely address the state of negotiations on the future relationship between the EU and the UK.
The European Council will take stock of the epidemiological situation with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic and discuss measures to advance cooperation between the member states. According to the Finnish government, topics of discussion in this area will include the development and distribution of vaccines, rapid antigen tests and the mutual recognition of test results and vaccination certificates.
The European Council should also agree on a new, more stringent emissions reduction target for 2030. The European Commission has proposed a new interim target of at least 55% in emissions reductions by 2030. At the moment, the EU is committed to reducing its emissions at by least 40% by 2030 compared to the levels in 1990.
Terrorist attacks
With regard to security, the European Council condemns the recent terrorist attacks in France and in Austria and stresses the need to uphold the common values of the Union and to continue defending them. The Council will discuss ways to intensify measures to combat terrorism through cooperation between the Member States.
On the topic of external relations, the meeting will focus on the relationship between the EU and Turkey and the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean. The European Council will also discuss the relationship between the EU and the USA.
In addition, the EU leaders will assess the implementation of the Minsk agreement and the need to continue the restrictive measures imposed in response to Russia’s destabilizing actions in Ukraine.
The Euro Summit on Friday will discuss the reform of the European Stability Mechanism and take stock of progress on the banking union and the capital markets union. The Eurogroup already agreed on changes to the European Stability Mechanism in its extended composition in November.
