Finance has become an essential attribute of power. Its importance has grown given the substantial investments needed for the energy and digital transitions as well as the need to support economies affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

On July 1, 2020, Germany assumed the six-month EU Council Presidency, at a time of global pandemic crisis. This presidency has thus quickly become a “corona presidency” in its objectives and functioning, itself a victim of the pandemic.

The German EU presidency in the second half of 2020 was Angela Merkel’s last presidency, shortly before her chancellorship ends in 2021. It was therefore expected that the Chancellor would use all her experience and influence to achieve positive results.

The year 2020 was to be a pivotal year for (re)formulating Europe's Africa strategy. Germany and France were committed to strengthening relations between the two continents and to consolidating them at the sixth summit of the African Union and the European Union, which was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The world’s largest emitting countries are reconsidering the role of carbon pricing instruments and increasingly looking at carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAMs) to address leakage concerns. This renewed momentum should trigger a broader discussion on how to make trade policies compatible with the climate agenda.

The European Union’s energy infrastructure policy has become obsolete with the adoption of both the Green Deal and the 2050 climate neutrality target. The ongoing review of the regulation on Trans-European Energy Networks (TEN-E) should lead to an-depth discussion on Europe’s energy transition strategy.