Environment and Climate Ministers: Strengthening Europe’s resilience, competitiveness and global credibility through coordinated EU action was the focus of an informal meeting in Lefkosia chaired by Dr Maria Panayiotou.
Ministers met at the Filoxenia Conference Centre with Commissioner Jessika Roswall and Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra in attendance, and they visited Delikipos Community Park to see a Cyprus methodology for quantifying carbon sequestration by trees.
The first working session examined how to align legislation and finance to bolster climate and water resilience, noting water scarcity and wider economic and security implications, and calling for a cross sectoral approach that links EU policies, funding instruments and national action.
Delegates discussed implementation of the forthcoming Integrated Framework for Climate Resilience and the EU Water Resilience Strategy, with particular attention to the needs of vulnerable regions and member states.
Speaking at the meeting, Dr Maria Panayiotou said the task ahead is to turn shared ambition into coherent policies and concrete action, and she framed resilience as integral to competitiveness and global credibility.
Ministers also reviewed the EU's role in international climate negotiations, stressing a need for a more strategic, coordinated and political approach, early coalition building and sustained climate diplomacy.
The final working session focused on circular economy policies and the Commission's Winter Package, where ministers sought to strengthen the Single Market for secondary raw materials, address unfair competition in recycling and attract investment to close financing gaps.
Competitiveness Ministers Meet to Promote Industrial Strength And Consumer Protection
Competitiveness ministers gathered at the same venue under the Cyprus Presidency, chaired by Michael Damianos and attended by Commissioner Michael McGrath and Director General Kerstin Jorna to discuss internal market and industry priorities.
The first plenary reviewed ways to strengthen the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base, proposing greater use of the European Defence Industry Programme and the European Competitiveness Fund to support cooperation, joint investment and the transition from research to industrial scale manufacturing.
Delegates highlighted the importance of a well functioning Single Market for roughly 2,500 defence related SMEs and said standardisation should support interoperability, scalability and reduced external dependency.
The second plenary assessed progress on the Competitiveness Compass one year after its launch, noting low AI uptake among SMEs, financing limits for start ups and regulatory burdens, and discussing measures such as the AI Continent Action Plan, Clean Industrial Deal, Critical Raw Materials Act and Omnibus simplification packages.
Commissioner McGrath presented the 2030 Consumer Agenda at a working lunch where ministers exchanged views on building a stronger, fairer and safer Single Market, removing cross border barriers and adapting rules to market changes.
