On 1 July 2024, Hungary took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the opening ceremony of which was held in Brussels on Monday evening. As is tradition, the opening cultural event of the six-month presidency was held at Bozar in Brussels.
At the reception, attended by a full house, Bálint Ódor, Head of the Permanent Representation of Hungary to the European Union, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, welcomed the participants, followed by a speech by Tamás Sulyok, President of Hungary.
Permanent Representative Bálint Ódor emphasised that assuming the Chairmanship is a unique endeavour to strengthen the European Union.
We will be honoured to chair the Council meetings in this politically important and geopolitically challenging period
– he added.
In his speech at the opening event, Tamás Sulyok stressed that
the European Union is a remarkable and unique economic and political union. Less than a state, but more than a simple alliance.
The President noted that European unity is something so precious and delicate as the famous handmade lace of Brussels. And it is almost just as fragile. If we handle it with force, sooner or later it will be torn. But, if one single thread is torn, it will be ruined making the whole piece useless.
It is our joint responsibility to take care of it together – stated the President.
The evening also included a performance by artists from Müpa Budapest performing arts centre, entitled Our European Heritage. The production showed through the works of Johann Sebastian Bach and Béla Bartók, how the two composers incorporated the music and dance traditions of the European peoples into their art. Both geniuses made significant contributions to the preservation of the cultures of the peoples of Europe: while Bach incorporated melodies from the dances of peoples from England to France and Italy into his orchestral suites, Bartók did the same with the folk music he collected in the Central and Eastern European region. Our European Heritage builds a bridge between these pillars, pointing to our roots in the cultures of European peoples and nations and the cultural diversity born and reborn from their interconnection, wherein lies the strength of Europe.
The opening event, held on 1 July, thus paved the way for the events to be organised during the Hungarian Presidency in the second half of 2024.
(Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU)
