On January 1, Poland will assume the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first half of 2025. Succeeding Hungary, Poland will preside over the Council of the EU for the second time since the country joined the EU and so becomes the pivotal political stakeholder among European governments from January to July.

In the EU’s institutional structure, the Council of the European Union – also known as the Council of the EU, the Council of Ministers or simply the Council – is one of the two bodies of the bloc’s legislative branch. While the European Parliament represents EU citizens through directly elected lawmakers, the Council is composed of government ministers from each EU member state, sitting on policy-specific councils of EU legislature.

Holding the Council Presidency, Poland will be tasked with preparing the political and legislative initiatives in the Council, organizing and chairing the meetings in its various policy-specific bodies and representing the Council in its relations with other EU institutions, primarily the European Parliament and the European Commission (the EU’s top executive body with power to initiate legislation).Three successive EU Presidencies are known as Presidency Trios; the current trio consists of Poland, Denmark and Cyprus, until July 2026.

Supported by a 3,000-strong staff that will be in charge of close to 300 events, Poland's EU Presidency comes at an historically critical time for the European bloc as incoming US President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to negotiate a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in the first half of 2025. Accordingly, bolstering EU defence capabilities, resetting ties with the Trump White House and supporting war-torn Ukraine will be the top priorities for Warsaw on the surface. However, expectations are high for Warsaw to deliver in a number of different policy areas, especially as its Council Presidency will coincide with the launch of the EU’s new institutional cycle, providing Poland with a unique opportunity to deliver.