Ireland Puts Values at Heart of EU Presidency Agenda

While the presidency comes with no executive power, it is an influential position, with the member state holding it responsible for setting the Council’s agenda and guiding its work throughout its six-month term.

Examples of this include Hungary’s presidency in the latter half of 2024, which saw illegal migration brought to the fore of European debate, and the Polish presidency that followed, which was heavily focused on security, treating it as a multifaceted issue covering aspects such as defense, energy and border control.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said upon the launch of Ireland’s priorities and policy program that his country would “prioritize work to enhance the competitiveness of Europe’s economy, safeguard the fundamental values of our Union at home and abroad, and provide for the security of our citizens”.

“These three core themes – competitiveness, values and security – are closely interlinked and mutually reinforcing”, Martin added.

Competitiveness, Values and Security

Under competitiveness, five agreed-upon “strategic building blocks” are expected to guide the Council’s work: simplifying economic rules, increasing integration of the single market, promoting trade, supporting energy transition efforts and enhancing Europe’s digital and AI capacities.

On values, the Irish policy program leads with support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s ongoing war. Related to that, it says, is a focus on supporting multilateralism and the international legal order, working alongside the United Nations and the “wider multilateral system”. In this context, it highlights security in the Middle East, focusing on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Domestically, the document says that “we see the enlargement process as a key expression of our values”, and that particular actions toward that end will include working to conclude accession negotiations with Montenegro, while looking to make progress in negotiations with Albania, Moldova and Ukraine.

Democracy and Digital Speech

Meanwhile, Ireland intends to coordinate work on a number of European initiatives related to “democratic resilience”, some of which have proven flashpoints with the United States and other stakeholders in recent years.

“At a time when our democratic values are being questioned, we will seek to strengthen the EU’s democratic resilience through support for initiatives such as the European Democracy Shield and the EU Strategy for Civil Society”, the document states. It adds that efforts will focus on “addressing disinformation” and “child safety in digital environments”.

The document presents the Digital Services Act (DSA) as particularly useful in this regard, saying that it has demonstrated its “practical effectiveness as a tool to protect democracy and fundamental rights”.

However, multiple members of the Trump administration, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have criticized the DSA as a censorship tool that ultimately has a chilling effect on free speech.

Legal advocacy organization ADF International has also described the DSA as being “at the heart of Europe’s censorship industrial complex”, giving an “unaccountable bureaucracy” power to censor speech.

On the final theme, security, Ireland intends to build on the work of previous presidencies, including shoring up Ukraine’s defense against Russia and enhancing cooperation with its European partners.

Environmental security will be a priority for the Irish presidency, according to the document, with particular attention to be paid to “accelerating climate action at EU and international levels”. 

Coordinating against serious and organized crime, including migrant smuggling and firearm trafficking, is listed as a law-and-order focus of the presidency.

The controversial migration pact is mentioned, with the document saying that the Irish presidency will prioritize its full implementation and advance legislation facilitating migrant returns and the digitalization of return procedures.

Whispers of Euroskepticism

The agenda for Ireland’s Council presidency is in keeping with themes previously mentioned by Irish politicians, including Foreign Minister Helen McEntee, who expressed concern earlier this year about “whispers” of euroskepticism growing louder.

McEntee said such suggestions could not go unchallenged, and that they put forward the “seductive populist claim” that Europe’s problems, and Ireland’s problems, originate in Brussels.

She added that “we cannot cede the stage to these voices”.