ABSTRACT
In recent years, the European Union (EU) has had to face several challenges, such as the sovereign debt crisis, migration and refugee issues, the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU (Brexit), the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian Federation’s military invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. These challenges inevitably have led to the questioning of the unity of the member states of the Union, but also to an institutional redefinition of the decision-making process, which ultimately resulted in the reinforcement of the Council of the EU’s powers. Even so, it is in the Council that the weakness of small states is most noticeable and their ability to see their interests safeguarded is less assured. Nevertheless, states, even small ones, have their specificities that allow them to counteract their apparent disadvantages. Portugal, which held the presidency of the EU Council in 2007, having been a promoter and facilitator of the deepening of the Union through the Treaty of Lisbon, assumed the presidency again in 2021, during one of its most demanding political, economic and social moments. But what was Portugal’s role within the EU in managing the crises that the Union experienced from 2008 to 2021? Based on this research question, this chapter seeks to assess Portugal’s behaviour and policy options within the framework of the EU during this period, while evaluating the EU Council presidencies’ actions to mitigate the crisis and to ensure European unity.
