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This blockade “negatively affects the entire EU”, said this Thursday the Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban, who called for the “unblocking as soon as possible” of this plan that will benefit “all European citizens.”
The director of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, also called for this plan to be implemented “without delay”. “We continue to face serious circumstances, both economic and healthy,” he told a hearing before the European Parliament.
These calls come before the meeting of heads of state and government at 17:00 GMT, which was originally going to be dedicated to the Covid-19 epidemic, with the aim of coordinating “to avoid a third wave” in early 2021 Romania is represented at the summit of President Klaus Iohannis.
But while this issue will be addressed, as will the post-Brexit negotiations, the paralysis of the EU budget following the veto voiced by Hungary and Poland will be at the center of the talks. “It will be the elephant in the room,” according to a diplomatic source.
Warsaw and Budapest are firmly opposed to any mechanism that conditions European funds on respect for the rule of law (independence of the judiciary, the press, etc.). This mechanism can be activated by a qualified majority of states, that is, without Hungary and Poland.
“The beginning of the crisis”
In retaliation, the two countries on Monday opposed the decision to allow the EU to raise funds to finance the € 750 billion relaunch plan, thus blocking, in the absence of the required unanimity, the 2021-2027 European budget.
And Slovenia, although it did not oppose the approval of the budget, on Wednesday supported the frond of the two states.
“It is not a minor problem. It is the beginning of a crisis that will not be solved one day,” said a European source.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has expressed concern that his country may be deprived of European funding due to an arbitrary decision by Brussels to sanction its anti-migration policy. He asked for “objective criteria” and “the possibility of legal recourse.”
“We say + YES to + the + European Union and + NO + to the arbitrary criteria for evaluating the + so-called + rule of law +,” Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki wrote on Facebook on Thursday.
Along the same lines, his Slovenian counterpart, Janez Jansa, said that “only an independent court can say what the rule of law is.”
Several diplomats cite the possibility of “re-offering guarantees” related to the impartiality of this mechanism, reaffirming that the State in question will be able to defend itself and refer the matter to the Court of Justice of the EU.
But will this be enough to convince the ultra-conservative government in Warsaw, which claims to defend its values in an “ideological conflict” with the “European oligarchy”?
“Frustrations and anxieties”
The EU is studying several possible “technical clarifications” but “we will see if it will be necessary, ultimately, how to move forward without these blocking countries, because Europe cannot be held hostage by a series of governments that do not want to go ahead.” that they do not want to respect the essential foundation of our political project, ”the French Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, warned on Wednesday.
Therefore, the relaunch plan could be the subject of an intergovernmental agreement to exclude the dissatisfied states, a technically complex and “premature” option but “on the table”, according to a European source.
The European Parliament has ruled out any renegotiation of the compromise reached after many difficulties.
The exasperation is widespread and notorious. “When you look at the positions of Poland and Hungary on migration, the climate, the rule of law, the budget, there are many issues where they have difficulty. Let’s ask them what they want from this Union!” Another diplomat joked.
The sovereign Viktor Orban can play this postponement card because he knows that the countries of the South urgently need this plan, explains a source from the European People’s Party (EPP), the right-wing political family that includes Hungarian and Slovenian leaders.
A dangerous match, because Warsaw and Budapest, the main recipients of European funds, have a lot to lose.
No solution is expected on Thursday: this meeting, scheduled for three hours, will be “an opportunity for the exchange of opinions”, but “the lack of direct contact is a disadvantage” because private, often decisive discussions cannot be held. European font.
“The meeting will exacerbate frustrations and anxieties, a few days of drama and darkness are expected.”
