Taking over the Presidency of the EU on 1st July was an exceptional opportunity for Sweden to move forward; while leading the work of the EU and influencing the progress of discussions on important EU issues.
The MSB is actively involved and contributes to the work of the Swedish Presidency due to strategic goals and priorities outlined by the Swedish Government for the presidential period. Additionally, the MSB has, within the framework of the presidency, organized and held several different conferences and workshops in cooperation with the European Commission and the Swedish Ministry of Defence in order to develop strategic goals for the presidency and the EU agenda.
Prioritised themes during the presidential period
Many of the focus strategies for the Swedish Presidency also affect the MSB’s spheres of responsibility. The following are strategic goals and priorities during the Swedish presidential period:
- Climate, energy and environment
- Jobs, growth and competitiveness
- A safer and more transparent Europe
- The Baltic Sea region and relations with neighboring countries
- The EU as a global actor; continued enlargement
The MSB’s spheres of responsibility during the Swedish EU Presidency
Within the framework of climate change it is mainly in the area of prevention, i.e. preparing societies to tackle climate change in which the MSB has a role to play during the Swedish Presidency. The MSB hosted a workshop “Natural Disaster Prevention in the light of Climate Change and its implications for Civil Contingencies” in Stockholm (27th-29th July) in cooperation with the European Commission and the Swedish Ministry of Defence in order to support the work of the member states in the area of disaster prevention.
The MSB plays a major role in other prevention related issues which are tackled within the framework of the presidential period, such as, development of European security research as well as contributing to issues on disaster risk reduction in developing countries.
The MSB has actively contributed to the work achieved during the presidency in the field of CBRN via expertise during the process of developing Council conclusions. The MSB has been active in the CBRN field in preparations for Swedish involvement in the processes in hand at EU level.
Furthermore, the MSB supports the priority of the Swedish Presidency to develop a more integrated approach to disaster management, i.e. to facilitate the process of better linking the different phases of disaster management: prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.