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Testy EU budget talks blocked, new summit in March likely (AP)


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Friday, February 21, 2020
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Testy EU budget talks blocked, new summit in March likely (AP)
Testy EU budget talks blocked, new summit in March likely (AP)
Last Modified: 03:39 PM, Fri Feb 21, 2020

By LORNE COOK and RAF CASERT

21 February 2020

BRUSSELS (AP) - Major contributors to the European Union's budget blocked progress at an emergency summit on Friday, insisting they would not stump up more funds for the bloc's next long-term spending package, worth around one trillion euros ($1.1 trillion).


The so-called “Frugal Four” of Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden believe the EU's 2021-2027 budget, which is meant to fund ambitious climate change and digital economy policies, should amount to 1% of the 27-nation trading bloc's gross national income.


EU Council President Charles Michel, who met with EU leaders throughout the night trying to broker a compromise, has tabled a draft budget of 1.074% of gross national income. The European Parliament wants an ambitious 1.3%, while the EU’s powerful executive arm, the European Commission, prefers 1.11%.


“I can understand that when you're a prime minister in a country that has poor regions, infrastructures, I can understand that ... but when it comes to the percentage, I stand firm," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told reporters in Brussels Friday.


Asked whether the standoff can be resolved, Frederiksen said “no, I don’t think so. I’m willing to stay, and I’m prepared to stay the whole weekend. But no, I don’t think we’re going to reach an agreement.”


She said that another summit would be required, probably in early March.


Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins held out hope for a breakthrough. “It is difficult to find. We are working on it," he said, adding that more time might not fix things. “The question everyone needs to ask: what would change in 1, 2, or 3 weeks' time?"


Broadly speaking, the “Frugal Four” with the backing of Germany are lined up against the “Friends of Cohesion,” a group of mainly central and eastern European nations who want to see the continued flow of “cohesion funds” — money earmarked to help develop poorer regions.


“If we want to find an agreement, I think everybody has to be flexible. It cannot be the way that one or some countries try to dictate the outcome," said Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Asked about the chances of a breakthrough, she said: “It looks quite difficult."


Almost exactly 24 hours after the summit started, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told reporters that the “Frugal Four” are seeking a budget that for him and his allies lacks ambition.


“I don’t think this will be over with one negotiation,” Orban said.


After a night of bilateral talks with Michel and in small groups, the leaders were scheduled to meet together again Friday morning, but several hours later it still hadn't happened.


What’s at stake is whether the leaders are ready to put their money where their mouths are when it comes to European policy ambitions. At the same time, amid economic stagnation, they cannot afford to give the impression to their home audiences that they are splashing taxpayers’ cash.


With Britain gone from their ranks, the leaders want to prove that Europe can still forge ahead toward brighter horizons, but Brexit has left them with a sizable budget hole — about 75 billion euros ($81 billion) over seven years.


In the great scheme of things this is not a huge amount of money for the world’s biggest trading bloc. Even if a trillion euros sounds like a lot, it actually amounts to about 1% of the gross national income of the 27 nations combined.


The budget is also made up of customs revenue and income from fines levied by the commission, and the EU's executive arm has raked in plenty of those from antitrust cases involving tech firms and others in recent years.


So no country even pays 1% of its own gross national income, and the debate is over some 0.3 percentage points.


But it’s not just about convincing reluctant member countries to stump up funds. The parliament must also ratify any final budget agreement and for the moment EU lawmakers are far from happy.


“At the moment, we remain 230 billion euros ($248 billion) apart," European Parliament President David Sassoli said this week.

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Dateline: Brussels, Belgium - Friday 21 February 2020
Slugline: AP-Europe-Budget, 3rd Ld-Writethru
Organization: European Union, European Council, European Parliament, European Commission
Location: United Kingdom, Western Europe, Europe
People: Viktor Orban, Charles Michel
Media
Belgium Europe Budget  French President Emmanuel Macron arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (Ludovic Marin, Pool Photo via AP)
Belgium Europe Budget  European Council President Charles Michel arrives for a round table meeting at an EU summit in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. After almost two years of sparring the EU will be discussing the bloc's budget, to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Belgium Europe Budget  Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaks with the media as she arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Belgium Europe Budget  German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (Ludovic Marin, Pool Photo via AP)
Belgium Europe Budget  Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (Ludovic Marin, Pool Photo via AP)
Belgium Europe Budget  Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (Ludovic Marin, Pool Photo via AP)
Belgium Europe Budget  Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, walks out into the main press room to brief journalists during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Belgium Europe Budget  European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gestures as she arrives for a round table meeting of EU leaders at an EU summit in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. After almost two years of sparring, the EU will be discussing the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Riccardo Pareggiani, Pool)
Belgium Europe Budget  French President Emmanuel Macron, right, speaks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, left, during a round table meeting at an EU summit in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. After almost two years of sparring, the EU will be discussing the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Belgium Europe Budget  European Union leaders meet during a round table at an EU summit in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. After almost two years of sparring, the EU will be discussing the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Riccardo Pareggiani, Pool)
Belgium Europe Budget  Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin speaks with the media as he arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Belgium Europe Budget  Romanian President Klaus Werner Ioannis arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Belgium Europe Budget  Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov arrives for an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. In a second day of meetings EU leaders will continue to discuss the bloc's budget to work out Europe's spending plans for the next seven years. (Ludovic Marin, Pool Photo via AP)
Keywords
General news, Government and politics, Business, National budgets, Government budgets, Government finance, Government business and finance, National governments, Summits, International relations, Legislature, Europe-Budget


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