On 1 July 2011, Hungary will hand over the presidency of the EU Council to Poland. The priorities and challenges of the upcoming Polish Presidency were discussed by Janusz Reiter, President of the Center for International Relations, Warsaw, and Elmar Brok, MEP, Foreign Policy Spokesman of the EPP group and member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. The discussion was moderated by Markus Meckel, former Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Two chances for the upcoming six months were underlined in the discussion. First, the Polish government could bring new political impetus to the European Neighborhood Policy addressing both the southern and the eastern dimension. Second, the Weimar Triangle could be used for a coordinated EU policy and offer the EU a conceptual guide.

The event was part of the Round Table Poland. The Round Table Poland is a joint initiative of the German Council on Foreign Relations and the Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation and is chaired by Markus Meckel.

Academic Advisor: Anna Quirin