Belgian EU Presidency Through Hungary's Prism

While anti-Hungarian government rhetoric may be a theme in various national campaigns, the Belgian presidency does not prioritize advancing ongoing rule-of-law procedures. Hungary is set to follow Belgium in assuming the EU rotating presidency. Much like Belgium, Hungary's presidency will also take place under special circumstances.

In a special situation

The Belgian presidency will take place in a special situation, as in addition to the European Parliament elections, the country will also hold federal and regional elections on 9 June. In the calendar published by the EP, meetings and events are scheduled until April 25 because of the elections.

This is when MEPs kick off their campaigns, thus the last two months of the Belgian presidency will focus on political rather than policy issues,

he noted, adding that the Belgian presidency will do the bulk of its work in the first half of its presidency. The expert stressed that the most important thing for Hungary is to have good relations with the Belgian government with a view to the handover of the presidency. Hungary will also be in a very special position during its presidency, because immediately after taking over, the new parliament will set up, elect its leaders and institutions, and the new European Commission will presumably formed in November or December.

During Hungary's presidency, there won't be much regular legislative work going on, thus our presidency will be unusual because of the cyclical renewal of EU institutions.

This means that the policy space open to the Hungarian presidency is much smaller than in 2011. This is both a challenge and an opportunity for Hungary. We can contribute to this change of institutional cycle, but it will also take a lot away from Hungary in terms of policy-making," the researcher pointed out.

Cover photo: The European Parliament in session (Photo:  AFP/Kenzo Tribouillard)