On Monday (20 July), EU leaders resume talks over the EU’s long-term budget and recovery fund after a full weekend of meetings in Brussels without a breakthrough.
A new plan was presented early on Saturday by the EU Council president Charles Michel to convince the ‘Frugals’ – who are in favour of having a larger share of loans, over grants, and want more conditions and control over the expenditure of member states.
EU ministers for agriculture and fisheries will hold on Monday their first meeting in person since the start of the coronavirus pandemic to discuss the reform of the common agricultural policy and the farm-to-fork strategy presented by the European Commission earlier this year.
EU ministers for responsible for research and innovation will discuss on Tuesday (21 July) and Wednesday (22 July) how these topics can contribute to the social, economic and ecological transformation.
Germany, Portugal and Slovenia will present a joint roadmap on research and education policy under the current German council presidency.
Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell will discuss on Tuesday by videoconference the situation in Venezuela with his Canadian counterpart François-Philippe Champagne.
Foreign affairs and security policy
The European Commission on Wednesday is expected to present a new security strategy for the EU as well as action plans against drugs, child sexual-abuse and firearms trafficking.
On Thursday (23 July), commissioner for migration, Margaritis Schinas and commissioner for neighbourhood, Olivér Várhelyi, will attend in Vienna a ministerial conference on combatting irregular migration along the eastern Mediterranean route.
On the same day, the commissioner for jobs and social rights, Nicolas Schmit, will participate in the launch of the annual report on housing exclusion in Europe by the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless and Foundation Abbé Pierre.
Likewise, the European Policy Centre, a Brussels-based think tank, will hold on Thursday a debate about Turkish foreign policy with Ibrahim Kalın, who is a spokesman and chief adviser to the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
On Sunday (26 July), EU ministers of defence will prepare for their next official meeting in Brussels for November 2020 and discuss the next steps in the development of the upcoming EU’s common security and defence policy.
The European Parliament is in recess over the summer holidays from 20 July until 24 August.
