Priority dossiers under the Bulgarian EU Council Presidency

Bulgaria will hold the EU Council Presidency from January to June 2018. This will be the first time Bulgaria has held the rotating presidency since it joined the EU in 2007. Its Presidency is part of the Trio Presidency composed of Estonia, Bulgaria and Austria. It is to be noted that a new Joint Declaration is being prepared and will be negotiated by the three Presidents in early December 2017. It is likely that the new Joint Declaration will cover January 2018-May 2019, to coincide with the legislative cycle of the European Parliament. Taking into account the need for active dialogue with EU citizens, Bulgaria will strive to achieve progress in the field of security, employment, sustainable growth and ensuring a stronger EU presence on the world stage. In particular, it tasks itself with focusing on youth questions and security issues as horizontal priorities. The Bulgarian government has announced three broad messages for its programme: Consensus, Competitiveness and Cohesion.