The Danish Presidency 2002: Completing the Circle from Copenhagen to Copenhagen. ZEI Discussion Paper: 2003, C 123

[From the Introduction]. In recent years we have seen an increasing interest in EU Presidencies, partly because the role of the Presidency has indeed increased. This increased role is due to the expanding scope of integration as well as the widened membership of the EU. At the same time there has been a tendency to involve the European Parliament more in the decision-making process. These factors have contributed to making decision-making a more complex process. The Presidency’s main role is to 'manage' multi-layered process of decision-making in an emerging polity. This involves – in cooperation with the Council Secretariat and the Commission – setting the agenda, exercising leadership – as a mediator and a policy entrepreneur – finding compromises, and representing the EU towards the external world, both in economic and political areas. Denmark held the Presidency during the second half of 2002. How much could it affect the agenda and the results? This question about influence is not an easy one. A Presidency can of course try to pull the integration process in the direction it prefers, but it has to be careful not to be too partial. It has to a certain extent to anticipate the reactions of the other Member States to its ideas and proposals. In the end the Danish Presidency achieved much of what it set out to achieve, especially the completion of accession negotiations with 10 applicant countries: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus and Malta