NordenBladet — The EU General Affairs Council will meet in Brussels on 22 February. The topics of the meeting will include preparing for the European Council in March, discussing strengthening of the EU’s preparedness, response capacity and resilience to future crises, the rule of law in Poland, and progress of the Conference on the Future of Europe. Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen will represent Finland at the meeting.The ministers will start preparing the European Council on 24 and 25 March 2022 and exchange views on the draft annotated agenda. The topics on the European Council agenda will include EU coordination of COVID-19 measures, security and defence, European Semester and topical external affairs questions. In March, the members of the European Council will also discuss the single market and industrial policy.The ministers will hold a policy debate on strengthening the EU’s preparedness, response capacity and resilience to future crises. They will be discussing the implementation of the conclusions on resilience adopted by the European Council in November 2021 and December 2021. The aim is for the EU to be better prepared for future crises. Finland emphasises a comprehensive approach, preparedness for different kinds of crises and securing the functioning of the single market even under crisis conditions.The meeting will include a hearing on the rule of law in Poland. No substantive decisions will be made, as the Council will not be formulating a position at this time. Finland continues its efforts to actively promote democracy, rule of law, and fundamental and human rights.“The EU is founded on respect for the rule of law. Poland’s rule of law situation gives cause for concern. It is important that we continue with the hearings until we are able to resolve all the concerns we have over the rule of law,” Minister Tuppurainen says.The French Presidency will inform the ministers on the progress of the Conference on the Future of Europe. The ministers will exchange views on the matter. As part of the Conference, the Finnish Government organised a ‘We are Europe’ series of events last autumn and early this year. A summary of the events was published on 9 February 2022. At the events, ministers spoke with people to hear their opinions on what kind of EU they would want to be building. It is important that the views of Finnish people be heard in the Conference and in its outcomes. The Conference outcomes must be representative and they must broadly reflect the views of different kinds of EU citizens.In the General Affairs Council (GAC), the EU Member States are primarily represented by their ministers for European affairs. The tasks of the Council include preparations for the European Council meetings. The GAC is also responsible for a number of cross-cutting policy areas, including negotiations on the multiannual financial framework and EU enlargement. Questions related to the rule of law are also an established part of the Council’s agenda.
Source: Valtioneuvosto.fi