On 1 January 2020, the EU’s youngest member state Croatia has assumed the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU for the very first time. On 1 July 2013, Croatia was the second ex-Yugoslav country and the first Western Balkan country to join the EU. Following its EU membership, Zagreb has made deeper integration with the EU a priority. To this end, Croatia has been moving towards adopting the single currency and membership into the Schengen area. In November 2019, the European Commission confirmed that Croatia had fulfilled the technical criteria to join the passport-free Schengen zone. To accede to the Schengen area however, Zagreb must now seek the approval of the European Council. Meanwhile, Zagreb has applied for joining the so-called Eurozone waiting room Exchange Rate Mechanism II (ERM II).

Six and a half years into its EU membership, EU’s newest member Croatia is presiding over the Council at a highly critical time, just a month after the new European Commission and the President of the European Council took office. Moreover, the EU’s agenda is likely to be dominated by Brexit and the negotiations on the 2021-2027 Multi-Annual Financial Framework. With Brexit scheduled for 31 January 2020, at the end of the first month of its EU Presidency, the EU’s newest member state is likely to coordinate the efforts related to the UK’s departure from the EU which will be followed by negotiations concerning the future relationship framework.

Driven by the motto “A strong Europe in a world of challenges” Croatia’s first ever EU Presidency will focus on four priority areas, namely:

• a Europe that is developing,
• a Europe that connects,
• a Europe that protects, and
• an influential Europe.

Enlargement is regarded as a priority dossier for the Croatian EU Presidency. Zagreb aims to use its tenure to push forward with the EU integration in the Western Balkans. In this regard, the EU-Western Balkans Summit scheduled for May 2020 will be the major highlight of the Croatian EU Presidency. Given the recent stalemate caused by the controversial French veto on opening accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia, the Zagreb Summit holds significance as the Council is set to decide on the matter prior to the Summit.

Further information on the Croatian Presidency of the Council of the EU is available at https://eu2020.hr/