[1] Romania started preparations for taking over the presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2017, organising several meetings of the Presidency Trio (composed of Romania, Finland and Croatia) and appointing and training numerous additional staff to ensure an appropriate chairing of the office.

[2] On 9 May, during Europe Day, an informal summit in the Romanian city of Sibiu with the participation of the heads of state of all 27 EU member states and several other relevant European politicians took place.

The priorities of the EU in the coming years were discussed and the so-called Sibiu Declaration was adopted.

The summit also saw several bilateral meetings between various European leaders and politicians, as well as the meeting between Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel and representatives of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania.

The European heads of state received a warm welcome by the inhabitants of the city.