The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, presented on Tuesday the review of the multiannual financial framework, choosing three priorities that lack funds.
To support Ukraine, respond to the migration crisis and ensure the competitiveness of the European economy, in a world that has changed, Von der Leyen calls for a long-term budget reinforcement and 66,000 million euros.
Von der Leyen says that since the multiannual financial framework was approved, “three new crises” have occurred, in a “challenging” context. Such changes translate into new spending at the European level. The Commission President singles out three categories, with Ukraine at the top.
“We propose a financial reserve of 50,000 million euros for the next four years. This includes loans and grants”, said the president of the community executive, stressing that “this reserve will provide, first of all, perspectives for our partners in Ukraine [como] predictability, and should also encourage other donors to contribute.
At the top of the Commission’s priorities is also “the challenge of migration”, which has reached “a magnitude that requires an urgent response”. And here, too, more funds are needed.
“We intend to provide our Member States with financial support to strengthen the management of our external border. We have to work more intensely with our neighbors to promote economic development and stabilize these countries, ”he defended.
“We need an additional budget for Syrian refugees in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, for the southern migration route, for the Western Balkans, for partners around the world and also to maintain our ability to react to humanitarian crises and natural disasters. ”, Von der Leyen said, adding that “15,000 million euros” are being requested for these items.
The third item on the list is the resilience and competitiveness of the European economy. Von der Leyen affirms that Brussels will reinforce technological investment.
“We identified three priority sectors that are essential to preserve the digital area and our competitive advantage, such as cutting-edge technology, clean technology and biotechnology,” said the head of the community executive.
“We have efficient funds in our European budget for projects in these sectors. But we have limited budgets and, in this case, we are asking for a limited reinforcement of 10 billion euros for some of these funds”, he stressed.
The mid-term review of the multiannual financial framework implies an increase in national contributions to the Community cake. “We are asking our 27 Member States for an endowment of 66 thousand million euros to concretize the three priorities”, revealed the president of the European Commission, noting that Ukraine, Migration and competitiveness are the three highlights in the long-term European Union.
Source: TSF
