Next, the Europa Today newsletter that every Sunday morning tells you what will happen in the coming European week, edited by Alfonso Bianchi (for comments, suggestions or criticisms write to [email protected]).
Top of the agenda
The new Trump era begins – The eyes of the world are all focused on Washington where Donald Trump’s investiture ceremony will take place on Monday 20 January, marking the start of his second presidency. Usually the president of the United States does not invite foreign leaders to his inauguration but the Republican has decided to transform the event into a show that will also serve to show who his interlocutors (or courtiers if you want to be naughty) are.
Von der Leyen no, Meloni yes – It is not surprising that none of the leaders of the EU institutions are among the guests, while the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will be there, who has confirmed her presence. And in the old continent she seems to be the closest to the Republican, after the surprise mission to Mar-a-Lago and also thanks to the good relationship she has with Elon Musk, increasingly the right-hand man of the tycoon.
Walkway to the right – Trump invited several far-right world leaders to the inauguration, such as the Argentine president Javier Milei, and many Europeans, including the British Nigel Farage, the French Éric Zemmour, two senior exponents of the German party AfD and Paolo Borchia to make the on behalf of the League. Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orban, was also invited, but said he would not attend.
The return of vdL – And while Trump is being crowned, Ursula von der Leyen will return to work in Brussels on Monday after a long absence. The president of the Commission was away from her duties due to bad pneumonia, for which she was also hospitalized. His absence caused controversy due to the lack of transparency with which the details of the illness were communicated to the press.
The world’s big names in Davos – And the return to work will be quite hectic, given that among the commitments awaiting her are the Plenary of the European Parliament and the Davos Economic Forum. Like every year in the Swiss town, world leaders and personalities from the world of economics will meet for the World Economic Forum, to discuss the economic challenges facing the planet (here is the program)
From Zelensky to Trump – Among the speeches there will be that of Ukrainian president Zelensky (Tuesday 21st) and Trump (Thursday 23rd but by video conference), but also several leaders of community institutions. Von der Leyen will also speak on Tuesday, on Thursday Economy Commissioner Dombrovskis will discuss customs duties with WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala while on Friday ECB President Lagarde will talk about the prospects of the world economy with IMF President Kristalina Georgieva.
EU Council
Simplify payments – The Eurogroup meets in Brussels on Monday 20th. The ministers of the twenty countries with the single currency will discuss, among other things, how to better exploit new technologies to improve wholesale transactions, i.e. those carried out between companies or retailers for the purchase of goods or services in large quantities. Hyun Song Shin, economic advisor and head of the monetary and economic department of the Bank for International Settlements, will participate in the debate.
Towards community bitcoins – Ministers will also be updated on developments of the digital euro, one of the tools with which the ECB aims to modernize transactions for citizens and businesses. Frankfurt is studying the possibility of creating a sort of community bitcoin, and the two-year test phase should end next November after which a concrete proposal is expected.
Energy dinner – After the meeting, EU finance ministers will discuss energy prices at an informal dinner organized by the Polish presidency to “work out a strategy to solve the energy conundrum Europe is facing”, wrote the finance minister. Polish finance Andrzej Domański, in the invitation letter. We will also talk about the new transatlantic relations after Trump’s return.
Clemency for France – The Ecofin meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 21st which, among other things, will have to approve the recommendations for the member states. And in the dock is France with its deficit monsters. The problem is that the recovery plan presented in Brussels months ago belongs to a government that has now fallen, with François Bayrou’s new executive struggling to stay on its feet.
It takes good will – The new government has already changed the 2025 deficit forecast from 5 to 5.4 percent. But Brussels seems intent on not inflicting too much on the country in difficulty and in which the radical right of the Rassemblement national of Le Pen and Bardella could come to power. The Council is willing to show “goodwill and cooperation in order to find a solution”, a community source explained.
European Parliament
Everyone in the Chamber – The deputies meet again in the plenary session in Strasbourg. One of the typical images of these meetings is that of an empty Chamber in which only a few dozen people participate in the debates (when things go well), with most of the 720 seats remaining empty. The Chamber is full only for votes and debates with the most important personalities. But something will change now.
The Metsola blitz – President Metsola, at the suggestion of a group of young parliamentarians, decided that in two debates (the one on the European Council and the one on the DSA) the order of speech in the Chamber will not be published. This means that whoever has to speak will only find out last second when it is his time to intervene, to prevent a deputy from arriving in time to speak and then leaving, leaving the Chamber deserted.
Pros and cons – The habit of leaving the Chamber half-empty is clearly unpleasant, especially when the debate is with representatives of the Commission or leaders and important personalities who find themselves ‘snubbed’ by the deputies. But it is also true that during the plenary sessions in Parliament there are also other activities, such as committee meetings and various events, in which deputies often also have to participate. For this reason, some criticize the intervention, arguing that other ways must be found to ensure presence in the Chamber. The method is certainly not ideal for journalists, who will not be able to know when a specific politician who they might be interested in following will speak.
Tusk’s EU – On Wednesday 22nd the deputies will discuss with the Prime Minister of Warsaw, Donald Tusk, the program of the Polish presidency of the Council, which began on January 1st. One of the goals will be to continue supporting Ukraine in the war against Russia. Tusk is also pushing for an increase in military spending and has said there must be no more “leniency” for European countries that spend 1 or 1.5 percent of GDP on defense. Poland will spend 4.7 percent of its GDP this year, a level never reached in NATO.
The premiere of the ‘new’ Costa – Also on Wednesday, Antonio Costa will participate in a debate in Parliament for the first time in his new role as President of the European Council. Together with von der Leyen, the Portuguese socialist will discuss the results of last December’s EU Summit with deputies.
New melodrama about Venezuela – The strength of the majority will be tested again in this plenary. And again on a vote regarding Venezuela. On Thursday 23rd the Chamber will vote on a resolution against President Nicolas Maduro, to state that his re-election is illegitimate and the result of fraud. But the right could go further and reiterate its recognition of opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia as the legitimate president.
The broad front of the right – It was precisely on this recognition that last September the official majority of socialists, liberals and popular split for the first time, with the latter allying themselves with the entire right of the Chamber, from Meloni’s ECR to Orban’s Patriots and up to the sovereignists of the AfD (creating what was later christened the Venezuela majority). Socialists and greens will try to present a common resolution but whether there will be a new split will depend on what Weber’s popular people decide to do.
Arm wrestling with Musk – The recent ones endorsement by Elon Musk on X to far-right movements such as the German AfD, have sparked strong controversy in Europe. In the United Kingdom, the owner of Tesla also relaunched false news about Prime Minister Starmer’s alleged involvement in the cover-up of cases of gang rape, forcing the Labor Party to defend itself against unfounded accusations. MEPs are pressuring the Commission to be tougher in enforcing the Digital Services Act against X, Meta and TikTok.
More DSA for everyone – On Tuesday 21st the deputies will discuss with the executive the need to apply the Digital Services Act (DSA) and other tools to combat the use of social media as a tool of foreign interference in our democratic processes. While liberals, green socialists and the left accuse the platforms of not doing enough to stop fake news, the right speaks of an attempt to silence dissenting voices.
History according to Putin – On Thursday 23rd the deputies will vote on a resolution on how to combat what are deemed false narratives by Vladimir Putin’s Russia to justify its war against Ukraine, narratives used to discredit and weaken international support for Kiev and to undermine its independence and sovereignty.
European Commission
Tight in Croatia – On Monday 20th the Vice President of the Commission, Raffaele Fitto, will be in Croatia to participate in a debate on cohesion policy and the Recovery Plan.
Urso from Virkkunen – Tuesday 21st the vice president for Technological Sovereignty, Henna Virkkunen, meets Adolfo Urso, Minister of Business and Made in Italy.
European defense – Wednesday 22 January 2025 Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius and High Representative Kaja Kallas deliver a speech at the European Defense Agency’s annual conference “New horizons in EU defense: strengthening ambitions, accelerating actions”.
Italy and the Mediterranean – On Friday 24th the Commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Šuica, will be in Rome where she will meet Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani and other representatives of the Italian executive. Among the topics that will naturally be discussed is the management of migratory flows.
Kallas in Türkiye – On Friday 24th the High Representative Kallas will be in Türkiye where he will meet the Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan and the president of the Grand National Assembly, Numan Kurtulmus. Among the topics under discussion is the future of Syria, with Ankara having created a privileged relationship with Damascus after supporting Abu Mohammad al-Jolani’s guerrillas.
Other events
Scholz from Macron – Wednesday 22nd German Chancellor Olaf Scholz flies to Paris to be received at the Elysée by French President Emmanuel Macron. The visit takes place to celebrate the anniversary of the signing of the 1963 Elysée Treaty, which established a treaty that put an end to years of conflict and established a collaboration agreement between the two nations in essential sectors, from security to economic and cultural development.