Vienna, 1 July 2022 (TDI): Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schulenburg expressed his good wishes for the Czech Republic as the latter assumed the presidency of the Council of Europe for the next six months.
In his tweet, he said that the coming month will be challenging for Europe and Europe has to act decisively. He assured his full support for the Czech Republic. “You can count on our full support,” he said while mentioning Jan Lipavský, Czech Foreign Minister in his tweet.
All the best to Czech Republic for taking over the 🇪🇺 Presidency! The coming months will continue to be challenging and Europe has to act decisively. Dear @JanLipavsky & @EU2022_CZ you can count on our full support! #EU2022CZ
— Alexander Schallenberg (@a_schallenberg) July 1, 2022
Furthermore, the Czech Republic has assumed the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the next six months replacing France. From July 2022, the EU will be led by the Czech Republic. Amid the complex environment of Europe, the EU presidency will be very challenging for Prague.
In addition, Ukraine Russia Crisis, over five million Ukrainian refugees, with 400,000 in the Czech Republic alone, soaring inflation, and Climate Change are some daunting challenges for Prague in the coming months.
Prague’s five main priorities for the next six months
- Firstly, Prague will focus on the Ukraine-Russian war and focus on the ongoing refugee crisis, and post-war construction. It will also work to slap new sanctions on Russia.
- Secondly, under its presidency EU will try to enhance security cooperation with the USA and NATO.
- Third, Prague will try to phase out Russian Fossil fuels from European Market and look for other energy alternatives.
- Fourth, rising inflation is another challenge for Prague and its plans for new trade deals.
Apart from this, the Czech Republic joined European Union in 2004 and is a staunch supporter of welcoming new members into the European community.
It is also a staunch supporter of Ukraine and its ascension to the presidency will boost the expectation of Ukraine’s membership in the European Union.
