EUROGROUP,COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,update

 

Meetings Thursday, 19 June 2025

● Eurogroup   19/06/2025 21:45 | Meetings | Main results - Eurogroup, 19 June 2025   The Eurogroup endorsed a recommendation by euro area member states to the Council on Bulgaria’s adoption of the euro. The Eurogroup also heard a presentation by the International Monetary Fund on the findings of the Article IV review and its recent analysis of internal barriers in the single market. Ministers also discussed national budgetary developments in the context of the new fiscal framework and received updates on the technical progress of the digital euro project.

● Eurogroup

19/06/2025 21:32 | Statements and remarks | Remarks by Paschal Donohoe following the Eurogroup meeting of 19 June 2025   Today, we took a very important decision to recommend that Bulgaria become the 21st member of our euro area family. This is a well-deserved achievement for Bulgaria. It is an acknowledgement of the commitment, the significant convergence process that has been undertaken, and the enormous work by the Bulgarian authorities. It's also a really good signal for the strength of our monetary union. The euro is the foremost symbol of European integration and mutual confidence between countries. It is the foundation for the prosperity of our citizens and an anchor of stability for our region. We specifically welcomed two convergence reports from the Commission and from the ECB, and we concurred with the institutions that Bulgaria fulfils the criteria for introducing the euro. The Bulgarian Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank have clearly stated their commitment to sound policies, together with maintaining a sustainable convergence path and ensuring Bulgaria's smooth participation in the Euro area. So we prepared in the Eurogroup the necessary draft recommendation to the Council on the adoption of the euro by Bulgaria on 1 January of next year. This will serve as an input into the Ecofin Council discussions that will take place tomorrow. I believe that the rest of the legislative process will go smoothly. Moving on to other matters, our meeting continued with a discussion with another Bulgarian guest, in this case the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva. Her team joined us for two separate discussions. The first was our regular discussion on euro area policies, which the IMF assessed under their Article IV work. This time we had a particular focus on financial sector issues, as the fund is completing its in-depth assessment of our financial sector under its Financial Sector Assessment Program and the fund is about to issue its concluding statement. This gave us a good basis for our regular stocktaking on economic developments within the euro area. The good news is that our economies continue to show resilience, thanks in no small part to our coordinated policy response. At the same time, the IMF rightly pointed out that risks are rising and we have unfinished business. We took note of the IMF's comments on the need for prudent and differentiated budget priorities across the euro area. We also had a discussion item to check in on where we are with our medium term budget plans and also with regard to our budgets for 2025, following up on our commitments of just over half a year ago. We therefore touched on the recent draft budget plans of Belgium and Austria. The other main priority we face is the need to reinforce security in Europe and the spending that will be involved in doing this. As finance ministers, we focused on ensuring that necessary resources can be mobilised and at the same time maintaining our commitment to a stable euro area and to clear budget rules. We're going to come back to the fiscal coordination aspects of this in our next meeting, where we'll focus on the budget stance for the euro area as a whole, ahead of our budget preparations for 2026. We then had a very constructive exchange, enabled again by the IMF and by the work the Commission is doing on the new Single Market strategy, on further steps that we can take to remove barriers on the EU Single Market and the contribution that that can make to boosting our competitiveness and our growth. The Eurogroup broadly agreed with the IMF's assessment as to where our main priorities lie. Our long meeting concluded then with an important item of substance regarding the digital euro project. Since we touched on this project last time, technical work by the ECB has moved on and deliberations by the co-legislators on the legal framework are moving ahead. The discussion that we had today highlighted the continued political backing for this key project, recognising its strategic importance and the growing need to move forward in a timely manner. While we have done a lot, some outstanding issues remain. We agreed on the need to intensify efforts to identify workable solutions and looked at how we can coordinate our efforts as the Polish presidency concludes, and then the really important work which the Danish presidency is going to carry out on this. We couldn't be more committed to trying to find a successful conclusion. And we will look at how we will do this work in the time ahead. A final but important note on the presidency of the Eurogroup. As you know, my current term will come to an end on the 12 July. The election process, with a call for candidates, was launched today at the Eurogroup, and at the next Eurogroup meeting on 7 July, the matter will be dealt with. I've made public my intention to ask for support from my colleagues to continue my work. Thank you.

● Council of the EU

19/06/2025 21:08 | Media advisory | (CHANGE OF TIME) Press briefing - Foreign Affairs Council of 23 June 2025   The press briefing ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council will take place on Friday, 20 June 2025 at 16.00. This press briefing will be 'off the record' and will be given by a senior EEAS official in a hybrid format: EU accredited journalists will be able to participate and ask questions either remotely or in person at the Europa building press room. To attend the event remotely, please use this link to register and have the possibility to ask questions. Those who already registered for previous press events of the Foreign Affairs Council do not need to do it again. Deadline for registration: Friday, 20 June 2025, 15.00 Further instructions will be sent to all registered participants shortly after the deadline. ● Council of the EU   19/06/2025 18:04 | Meetings | Main results - Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (Social policy), 19 June 2025   Employment, social policy and equality ministers met in Luxembourg to discuss the traineeships directive, equal treatment, AI and gender equality, the European Semester, and ways to support older people to reach their full potential in the labour market and in society. ● Eurogroup   19/06/2025 17:36 | Press release | Euro area member states recommend that Bulgaria become the 21st member of the euro area   Today, the Eurogroup endorsed a recommendation from euro area member states to the Council of the European Union. Ministers agreed with the positive assessments provided by the European Commission and the European Central Bank regarding Bulgaria’s fulfilment of the convergence criteria in their respective Convergence Reports. The recommendation proposes that Bulgaria should introduce the euro on 1 January 2026. This marks the first step in a process through which the EU Council will adopt the necessary legal acts that will enable Bulgaria to become a member of the euro area and begin using the euro as its official currency as of next year. “I am very pleased to announce that the Eurogroup agreed today that Bulgaria fulfils all the necessary conditions to adopt the euro - a crucial step on Bulgaria’s path to become the 21st member of the euro area in 2026. Today’s milestone is a testament to Bulgaria’s strong commitment to economic convergence, reform and European integration. The adoption of the euro is not simply a technical process - it is a powerful symbol of trust, stability and shared prosperity.” — Paschal Donohoe, President of the Eurogroup Next steps This recommendation is set to be adopted by the Ecofin Council (by a qualified majority vote of the euro area member states) at its meeting of 20 June 2025. The Council is also expected to endorse a letter by the President of the Ecofin Council to the European Council. The European Council will discuss the matter at its meeting on 26-27 June. The process will conclude with the adoption by the Council (after it has consulted the European Parliament and the European Central Bank) of three legal acts that are necessary to enable Bulgaria to introduce the euro on 1 January 2026. The adoption of these acts is expected to take place in July. 2025 Convergence Report by the European Commission 2025 Convergence report by the ECB How to join the euro area (background information) ● Council of the EU   19/06/2025 15:35 | Meetings | Agriculture and Fisheries Council, 23-24 June 2025   Background brief - Agriculture and Fisheries Council, 23-24 June 2025   ● European Council   19/06/2025 16:04 | Media advisory | Press briefing - European Council meeting of 26-27 June 2025   The press briefing ahead of the European Council meeting of 26-27 June 2025 will take place on Monday 23 June 2025 at 11.00.  This briefing will be "off the record". The press briefing will take place in a hybrid format: EU accredited journalists or journalists accredited for the summit will be able to participate and ask questions either in person at the Justus Lipsius press room or remotely. To attend the event remotely, please use this form to register and have the possibility to ask questions. Deadline for registration: Monday 23 June 2025 at 10.00 Further instructions will be sent to all registered participants shortly after the deadline.

● Council of the EU

19/06/2025 15:51 | Press release | Council calls for targeted efforts to advance gender equality in the AI-driven digital age   The Council is calling for targeted efforts to advance gender equality in the digital age, with a focus on the risks and opportunities presented by AI. In today’s conclusions, the Council proposes several measures aimed at addressing continued gender inequalities, with specific emphasis on discrimination, bias, and violence towards women and girls in the digital world. “Advancing on gender equality, particularly within the context of a modern digital society, has been a key priority for the Polish presidency. Technology-facilitated gender-based inequalities must be tackled. We must take measures specifically addressing the risks and dangers posed by AI and the digital world, as well as seize the opportunities. All stakeholders must be engaged in building support systems that will make our lives free from all forms of violence, including digital violence.” — Katarzyna Kotula, Polish Minister for Equality A dual approach to gender equality A 2025 report from the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) 2025 stressed that institutional mechanisms are vital for achieving gender equality in all spheres. Accordingly, the Council’s conclusions push for member states to pursue a dual approach to gender equality, including both the integration of a gender equality perspective in all policies, as well as specific targeted gender equality measures. This includes strengthening the autonomy and effectiveness of governmental gender equality structures by providing them with a strong, clear mandate. The impact of technology The conclusions pay specific attention to the matter of technology-facilitated gender-based violence, calling on member states to make sure that national action plans against gender-based violence incorporate targeted measures for tackling this form of violence. Online violence disproportionately affects women in positions of power, particularly young women and women belonging to groups that face discrimination, which has the effect of further limiting their representation and participation in public life. Tackling gender bias in AI systems As gender bias in AI systems is known to result in discriminatory outputs, the Council urges member states to take measures to combat this problem through the use of clear, representative, high-quality data, as well as to install human oversight and ensure the systems’ compliance with non-discrimination rules and AI sectoral legislation. On the other hand, the Council also acknowledges the potential of AI systems and encourages their positive use. When clear, non-biased rules and high-quality data are used, AI may in fact be less prone to bias than human decision-making. Indeed, it can also facilitate the detection of bias through its capacity to collect and analyse large quantities of data. Combatting online misogyny The Council further seeks to counter the growing divide between young women’s and men’s views on gender equality, and the prevalence of online misogyny, and to this end advocates for research on misogynistic and masculinist online content and networks and calls for the full involvement of men and boys in addressing the causes of gender inequality. Prioritising gender equality Finally, the Council calls on the European Commission to continue with gender equality as a priority in its current term (2024-2029) and to follow-up on the momentum from the Gender Equality Strategy, most importantly by facilitating a framework for internet platforms to cooperate in protecting women’s and girls’ safety online. The conclusions ask for the mainstreaming of a gender perspective into all future EU policies, legislation, and funding, and in the implementation of the DSA and AI Act, and in the upcoming Apply AI Strategy and STEM Education Strategic Plan. They also recommend a renewed focus on the digital transformation when pursuing gender equality in external relations. Background Enshrined in the Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, equality between men and women is a fundamental principle of the EU. The European Commission’s Roadmap for Women’s Rights, presented in March 2025, “aims to drive forward and steer the gender equality policy agenda in the longer term, becoming the guiding EU policy framework towards greater gender equality in all aspects of society and the economy”. The EU has introduced a number of regulations in the fields of digitalisation and gender equality that underpin today’s conclusions. Directive 2024/1385 is a comprehensive legal framework to combat violence against women and domestic violence; it sets standards and requires member states to implement a number of measures in this area. Regulation 2024/1689 (the ‘AI Act’) is the first-ever comprehensive legal framework on artificial intelligence. Regulation 2022/2065 (the ‘Digital Services Act’) was introduced to create a safer online environment for EU users, and to address illegal content and ensure transparency. Conclusions on advancing gender equality in the AI-driven digital age Impact driver: marking milestones and opportunities for gender equality in the EU (EIGE report) Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence AI Act Digital Services Act Gender equality (background information)   ● Council of the EU   19/06/2025 13:21 | Press release | Simplification: Council agrees position to ‘stop-the-clock’ on due diligence rules for batteries   Member states’ representatives (Coreper) approved today the Council’s position on one of the Commission’s proposals to simplify EU rules and thus boost EU competitiveness in the field of batteries. The main goal is to postpone by two years the date of application of relevant due diligence obligations to allow economic operators placing batteries on the EU market more time to prepare. The proposal forms part of the so-called ‘Omnibus IV’ package adopted by the Commission on 21 May 2025 to simplify legislation, as part of the EU’s broader effort to support industrial competitiveness by reducing regulatory complexity. “Simplification has always been at the top of our priorities throughout the Polish presidency. Today’s agreement is a first step towards helping the EU’s batteries industry better prepare for the challenges of battery due diligence obligations and, thus, becoming more competitive in the global arena.” — Adam Szłapka, Minister for the European Union of Poland As part of the EU’s battery regulation, adopted in 2023, battery producers are obliged to publicly report on their due diligence practices to prevent or reduce batteries’ adverse impacts on the environment, including their waste management. The Commission proposal provides additional time to battery makers and exporters to comply with these new environmental due diligence rules by extending the deadline from 18 August 2025 to 18 August 2027. The postponement will also offer more time for the setting up of third-party verification bodies since several problems have been identified with their authorisation process due to the absence of a determined standard for accreditation. In addition, the Commission intends to publish the due diligence guidelines one year before the obligations take effect to give timely guidance to businesses and help ensure a smoother implementation of the new rules.  Finally, the Commission proposes to lighten the administrative burden of the due diligence rules by requiring companies to publish reports on their compliance every three years instead of annually. In view of significant implications for the business community, the Polish presidency has treated this proposal with utmost priority aiming to provide EU battery industry the necessary legal certainty regarding its reporting and due diligence obligations. Member states agreed with the presidency’s sense of urgency. Next steps The presidency will now enter negotiations with the European Parliament to reach an agreement on this proposal as soon as possible. Background In October 2024, the European Council called on all EU institutions, member states and stakeholders, as a matter of priority, to take work forward, notably in response to the challenges identified in the reports by Enrico Letta (‘Much more than a market’) and Mario Draghi (‘The future of European competitiveness’).  The Budapest declaration of 8 November 2024 subsequently called for ‘launching a simplification revolution’, by ensuring a clear, simple and smart regulatory framework for businesses and drastically reducing administrative, regulatory and reporting burdens, in particular for SMEs. On 20 March 2025, EU leaders urged the co-legislators to take work forward on these Omnibus simplification packages as a matter of priority and with a high level of ambition, with a view to finalising them as soon as possible in 2025. On 21 May 2025, and as part of the “Omnibus IV” package, the Commission put forward a proposal to amend Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 regarding the obligations of economic operators concerning battery due diligence policies. The package also contains a proposal for a directive and for a regulation on mid-caps, a simplification of certain data protection obligations for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and small mid-caps (SMCs), and a proposal for a directive and a regulation regarding the digitalisation and alignment of common specifications amending 20 pieces of EU product legislation under single market rules.

● Council of the EU

20/06/2025 14:39 | Press release | Stability and growth pact: Council decides on way ahead for Belgium and Romania under the excessive deficit procedure   The Council today approved a decision regarding Romania and a recommendation to Belgium under the excessive deficit procedure (EDP). Romania The Council launched an EDP against Romania on 3 April 2020 with a view to bringing its excessive deficit to an end. However, Romania continues to run high government deficits which exceed the 3% reference value set in the Treaties.  Today, the Council has therefore adopted a new decision establishing that Romania has not taken effective action in response to Council recommendations. Net expenditure has grown much faster than recommended leading to a persistent high government deficit and putting at risk a timely correction of Romania’s excessive deficit by 2030. Today’s decision opens the way for possible further steps if Romania does not take swift action to reduce its budgetary imbalances. Belgium On 26 July 2024, the Council launched an EDP against Belgium. Today, the Council adopted a revised recommendation for Belgium to end its excessive deficit by 2029. Belgium should therefore now ensure that its nominal growth rate of net expenditure does not exceed 3.6% in 2025, 2.5% in 2026, 2.5% in 2027, 2.1% in 2028 and 2.1% in 2029. Background Member states must comply with budgetary discipline on the basis of criteria and reference values set in the EU Treaties: their deficit should not exceed 3% of their gross domestic product (GDP) and their debt should not exceed 60% of their GDP. All member states have to respect these Treaty reference values. If an excessive deficit occurs in a member state, the aim of the EDP is to prompt its correction by putting member states under enhanced scrutiny and providing recommendations for them to take effective action to correct the deficit. Ultimately, the goal is to strengthen member states’ fiscal sustainability. Under the new economic governance framework, once an EDP has been launched, the Council shall make a recommendation to the member state concerned to take effective action to bring the situation of excessive deficit to an end within a set deadline. In its recommendation, the Council shall also request that the member state implements a corrective net expenditure path which ensures that the general government deficit is brought and maintained below the 3% of GDP reference value within the deadline set in the recommendation. Council Decision establishing that no effective action has been taken by Romania in response to the Council Recommendation of 21 January 2025 Council Recommendation with a view to bringing an end to the situation of an excessive deficit in Belgium Excessive deficit procedure (background information) Economic governance framework (background information)

● Council of the EU

20/06/2025 14:27 | Press release | Recovery and resilience fund: Council gives green light to amended plans of Belgium, Cyprus, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Poland and Slovenia   The Council today approved the Commission’s positive assessment of the amended recovery and resilience plans (RRPs) submitted by Belgium, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Cyprus, Malta, Croatia and Slovenia. According to the analysis of the Commission, the targeted modifications do not affect the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and coherence of their recovery and resilience plans. Belgium The amendments to 22 measures in the RRP of Belgium relate for the most part to putting in place better implementation alternatives than previously included and reducing administrative burden.  The estimated total cost of Belgium’s RRP amounts to €5.2 billion. Cyprus The revisions requested by Cyprus concern 87 measures. Reasons for the amendments range from certain measures now being considered partially unachievable, better alternatives found to achieve the original ambition of some measures, and to reduce administrative burden. The estimated total costs for the RRP of Cyprus are €1.2 billion. Croatia The Croatian amendments concern 30 measures with most changes reflecting new circumstances such as demand, inflation and better alternatives for implementation. The estimated total cost of Croatia’s plan is €10 billion. Italy Italy requested 67 amendments to its RRP, most of which relate to implementation improvements. Other amendments aim to reduce administrative burden and to help mitigate unexpected factors. In its request, Italy also asked to add two measures in the field of sustainable transport to its plan. The estimated total cost of Italy’s RRP is €194.4 billion. Lithuania The 74 amendments to the RRP submitted by Lithuania address changes in market demand and the impact of inflation and delays, as well as the need to implement better alternatives to some measures and reduce administrative burden. Lithuania also proposed to remove targets and milestones that were no longer feasible or necessary. The plan’s estimated total costs amount to just over €3.8 billion. Malta The amendments to the RRP of Malta concern 18 measures with most relating to the implementation of better alternatives and two measures now considered only partially unachievable. The estimated total costs of the RRP are €336 million. Poland Poland requested that 42 measures be revised in order to implement better alternatives, to reduce administrative burden and to amend some measures no longer considered partially or fully achievable. Poland’s estimated total costs under the plan amounts to almost €60 billion Slovenia The 50 revisions requested by Slovenia aim to reduce administrative burden and to reflect better implementation alternatives. The estimated total costs for the Slovenian plan are €2.2 billion. Background The RRF is the EU’s large-scale financial support programme in response to the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic has posed to the European economy. It is the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU, a temporary recovery instrument that allows the Commission to raise funds to help repair the immediate economic and social damage caused by the pandemic. To benefit from the facility, member states must submit recovery and resilience plans (RRPs) to the Commission, setting out the reforms and investments they intend to implement by the end of August 2026. To date, all RRPs have been approved and around €317 billion has been disbursed. Council implementing decision approving the assessment of the recovery and resilience plans for: Belgium Cyprus Croatia Italy Lithuania Poland Malta Slovenia A recovery plan for Europe (background information) ● Council of the EU   20/06/2025 14:20 | Press release | Economic governance: Council approves fiscal expenditure paths for Belgium and Bulgaria   The Council today adopted recommendations endorsing the maximum net expenditure paths for Belgium and Bulgaria in the period ahead, as laid out in those countries’ national medium-term fiscal-structural plans. For Belgium, which requested an extension of the fiscal adjustment period to seven years, the Council also endorsed the set of reform and investment commitments which underpin this extension. The medium-term fiscal-structural plans are a cornerstone of the new economic governance framework. The plans contain member states’ fiscal trajectory, together with envisaged reforms and investments. They contribute to strengthening member states' debt sustainability and promoting sustainable and inclusive growth. The net expenditure paths as set by the Council constitute the most important operational indicator for fiscal surveillance at EU level. This budgetary constraint will frame Belgium and Bulgaria’s national fiscal policies for next four to five years and help determine whether they are on a path towards achieving or maintaining healthy finances. Now that the Council has adopted its recommendations, the member states in question will have certainty as regards the budgetary paths they will follow in the coming years and can plan accordingly. Background Under the economic governance framework, in force since the end of April 2024, member states are asked to submit national medium-term fiscal-structural plans which cover 4 to 5 years. A key objective of the plans is to ensure that, by the end of the fiscal adjustment period, general government debt is on a plausibly downward trajectory, or stays at prudent levels, and that the government deficit is brought and maintained below the reference value of 3% of GDP over the medium term. Based on an assessment of the plan by the Commission, the Council adopts a recommendation in which it sets the net expenditure path of the member state concerned and, where applicable, endorses the set of reform and investment commitments underpinning an extension of the fiscal adjustment period. The plans also lay out reforms and investments responding to the main challenges identified in the context of the European Semester and addressing the common priorities of the EU. Each plan covers four or five years, depending on the regular term of legislature in a member state. Council recommendation endorsing the national medium-term fiscal-structural plan of Belgium Council recommendation endorsing the national medium-term fiscal-structural plan of Bulgaria Economic governance framework: Council sets fiscal expenditure paths for 21 member states (press release, 21 January 2025) Economic governance framework (background information) The European Semester explained (background information)