During its traditional meeting the EU Club at BCCI reviewed the Latvian and welcomed the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the EU

The EU Club at BCCI held its traditional meeting on the occasion of the assumption of the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU by the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg on 1^st July 2015.

The President of BCCI Tsvetan Simeonov opened the meeting and greeted the participants, among which were ambassadors and commercial counselors of the EU member-states, representatives of the Government, the business community, the non-governmental sector, the European Commission Representation in Bulgaria and members of the Management Board of BCCI.

Ingrid Shikova, Chair of the EU Club at BCCI presented the results achieved by the Latvian Presidency and the progress on promoting the competitiveness of the EU, establishing the Energy Union, Digital Europe, the “Juncker” growth and investment plan, etc. Despite the hardships Latvia deserves to be congratulated, it was pointed out, because it proved that small member-states can also achieve good results during their presidency of the Council of the EU and Bulgaria can learn from the Latvian experience.

H. E. Jean Faltz, Ambassador of Luxembourg outlined the priorities of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the EU among which are: strengthening the European Union’s presence on the global stage, development of the European Research Area and promotion of innovation, transition towards green economy and sustainable development, combating unemployment, terrorism, human trafficking and smuggling, and migration challenges. Efforts in the social sphere will not be spared as it is of utmost importance for the progress of the EU.

According to the Ambassador, taking over the Presidency of the Council of the EU is an opportunity for Luxembourg to prove its commitment to the European Union and its capacity to unite and be a good mediator.