On 1 July 2024, Hungary assumed the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union for a six-month term. Hungary had previously held this position in the first half of 2011. At that time, due to the change of the government in 2010, Hungary had little time to prepare for the Presidency. Despite these challenges, the 2011 Hungarian EU Presidency was considered a significant success. The preparations for the 2024 Hungarian EU Presidency began much earlier and in a timelier manner. The program outlining the policy priorities of the Hungarian Presidency was presented in mid-June 2024. The preparation for the Presidency was not solely the responsibility of the Hungarian government, which worked on developing various political and policy positions and organizing tasks related to the Presidency, but also involved many other actors who began preparing for the successful implementation of the EU Presidency.
Among these contributors was the Ludovika University of Public Service, Hungary’s leading higher education institution for public service training, which has supported the government’s objectives for the Presidency through its educational and research capacities. This includes training officials involved in the Presidency’s tasks, providing assistance in assembling the personnel required for the domestic events during the Presidency, conducting research relevant to the Hungarian EU Presidency and organizing high-level academic conferences and side-events.
The Europe Strategy Research Institute of the Ludovika University also played a significant role in these efforts. In early July 2022, the Institute launched a three-year research program focused on the 2024 Hungarian EU Presidency. Since the summer of 2022, the Institute has published several study volumes in both English and Hungarian, organized professional and academic conferences, and published brief policy-related posts on a daily basis. In September 2023, the Institute published a study volume titled On the Way to the Hungarian EU Presidency under the auspices of the Ludovika University Press, followed by another volume in April 2024, titled The 2024 Hungarian EU Presidency.
The present publication is also a result of the aforementioned research program, based on the “Hungarian EU Presidency Workshop Series” launched in September 2023. During this series, the institute’s researchers prepared policy papers within their respective areas of policy research. These papers discuss the challenges within each area, the policy achievements of the 2011 Hungarian Presidency, the Hungarian national interests and provide recommendations for the 2024 Hungarian EU Presidency. These analyses were presented and discussed at monthly workshops with the Institute’s staff, invited experts, and designated professional reviewers. The suggestions and additions made during the workshops were incorporated into the analyses. Between September 2023 and September 2024, the researchers presented seven policy papers; this publication is their summarized, edited version.
The policy papers can be accesed in the following links:
- Balázs Tárnok: Roma Policy of the EU https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/balazs-tarnok-roma-policy-of-the-eu
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Vivien Kalas: Institutional Reform Plans in the European Union https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/vivien-kalas-institutional-reform-plans-in-the-european-union
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Bernadett Petri: The Future of Cohesion: Bridging the Directly Managed EU Funding and Innovation Gap for Economic Success in Smaller and Poorer Member States https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/bernadett-petri-the-future-of-cohesion-bridging-the-directly-managed-eu-funding-and-innovation-gap-for-economic-success-in-smaller-and-poorer-member-states
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Aron James Miszlivetz: The EU at a Crossroads: Enlargement in turbulent times en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/aron-james-miszlivetz-the-eu-at-a-crossroads-enlargement-in-turbulent-times
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Réka Zsuzsánna Máthé: The European Union’s Sanction Policy – Challenges and Opportunities of the 2024 Hungarian EU Presidency https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/reka-zsuzsanna-mathe-the-european-unions-sanction-policy-challenges-and-opportunities-of-the-2024-hungarian-eu-presidency
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Tímea Zsivity: Security Challenges from the Western Balkans https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/timea-zsivity-security-challenges-from-the-western-balkans
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Viktória Lilla Pató: Securing Critical Raw Materials in the EU: Reducing Vulnerabilities in the Middle of Geopolitical Tensions https://en-eustrat.uni-nke.hu/research-projects/hungarian-eu-presidency-2024-eustrat-policy-papers-challenges-and-recommendations/viktoria-lilla-pato-securing-critical-raw-materials-in-the-eu-reducing-vulnerabilities-in-the-middle-of-geopolitical-tensions