EU must improve before enlargement: Von der Leyen announces reform roadmap by June

Brussels – Before the European Union becomes larger, or rather, more numerous, it must improve itself. In the press conference for the traditional official launch of the EU presidency, Ursula von der Leyen and Alexander De Croo agree that EU reform must be a priority during the next six months of Belgium’s EU presidency.

It is time to  think about the Europe of tomorrow: it is so in light of a substantial enlargement that could lead a Europe of Twenty-seven to become a Europe of Thirty-five, and it is also so because the European elections to be held June 6-9 will take the Union into a new institutional cycle. “Before we grow, we must improve. Europe must be able to deliberate more quickly while maintaining its unity and efficiency. That’s why the reform debate must be carried on,” remarked the Belgian premier, who from Jan. 1 until June 30 will drive the EU’s policy agenda.

Europe of Reforms

The traditional visit of the College of European Commissioners to the ministers of the government assuming the EU Council presidency was held today (Dec. 5) in Brussels itself, where the main EU institutions are also based. Ministers from Belgium and EU commissioners reached Egmont Palace in the afternoon by a special bus customized by the presidency for the occasion.

With the historic decision at the December EU summit to give the green light to the accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, it is not surprising that the discussion on institutional reforms and, in particular, overcoming unanimity voting, has also been accelerated. Picking up the political legacy of Spain, it will be up to the Belgian presidency in the coming months to take the discussion to a concrete level.

If the debate in the European Council is not going to be smooth (especially the small states do not want to give up their right to veto), the Belgian premier can count on the support of the European Commission, “We need to get bigger but we also need to get better,” echoed the president of the European Commission, who has never hidden her support to a reform that is as necessary as it is postponed. In particular, the one also called for by the European Parliament, to overcome unanimity voting in those areas where the EU currently struggles to make quick decisions, such as the economy and foreign policy. She anticipates that during the Belgian six-month EU presidency, the Commission will present “a roadmap for political reforms” in view of the enlargement.

Von der Leyen for an operational solution on the budget

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It was precisely the inability to make quick decisions that plunged the December European Council back into the impasse over the mid-term review of the EU’s multi-year budget (2021-2027), for which an extraordinary ad hoc summit was convened on Feb. 1. Turning against the revision of the EU’s financial framework until 2027 was Viktor Orban’s Hungary, opposed, in essence, to providing financial support to Kyiv with 50 billion euros from the EU budget, part of the proposed revision. With the Hungarian “no” to funds for Kyiv, the whole negotiation stalled.

“We urgently need to stabilize our financial support to Ukraine,” the Commission chairwoman urged at the press conference, confirming that the priority will be to reach “an agreement of 27” but that “we need to prepare for other operational options that we are preparing.” As it had also stated at the end of the December summit, the Commission is working on “operational solutions” to be presented at the February summit to circumvent the Hungarian “no” and break the deadlock on the permanent financial instrument for Ukraine. One possibility already circulated in December is to drop the 50 billion in support for Ukraine into a separate instrument and leave only the covering of the new EU priorities to the budget review. This could also overcome the hurdle of unanimity required for the green light on financial matters, paving the way for a 26-countries agreement on the new instrument for Kiev.