Today the Swedish Presidency of the EU is launched. Now Sweden is in the driving seat of the world’s largest integrated economy with nearly half a billion citizens. “It’s going to be a very exciting six months, but the task before us is not an easy one. I’m looking forward to tackling the autumn’s challenges together,” says Sweden’s Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt.   From today, 1 July, until the end of the year it will be Sweden’s task to drive the EU’s work forward. “The most important thing is to ensure that we are able to gather the EU together to respond to the challenges that people care about and where strong European cooperation can make a difference. This is a matter of dealing with the financial crisis together and tackling the rising unemployment that is currently affecting the whole of Europe. It is also matter of doing our bit to rally the whole world to tackle climate change. These two priorities will dominate our Presidency”, says Fredrik Reinfeldt.

Stockholm Programme

But there are also other important issues Sweden intends to pursue during its Presidency. One is the development and strengthening of EU cooperation on justice and home affairs in the Stockholm Programme, in order to be in a better position to fight cross-border crime. Another task is to adopt an EU strategy for the Baltic Sea region, in order to deal with environmental problems and increase the region’s competitiveness, along with continuing the work to form closer ties between the EU and its neighbouring countries and EU enlargement. The Swedish Presidency will also work to strengthen the EU’s role as a global actor with a clear agenda for peace, development, democracy and human rights. “In addition, we must expect the unexpected. Dealing with unforeseen events is often what distinguishes a Presidency. By working together in a way that is open, effective and results oriented , we will take on the challenges”, says Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt.