The ‘summit within the summit’ on competitiveness: 19 leaders, plus von der Leyen, meet ahead of talks with Costa

Brussels – In 19 plus, the European Commission will discuss competitiveness, the same topic at the centre of the summit of heads of state and government convened by the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, who finds himself competing with EU Member States for a moment. In Alden Biesen, the Belgian town chosen for the informal European Council summit, the leaders are holding an unprecedented pre-meeting. Not an institutional snub, but rather the desire to find answers to new and urgent needs, produced a somewhat unusual meeting within the meeting.

Italy, Germany, Belgium, the Countries that signed the joint document drafted ahead of today’s meeting (12 February), gave rise to a discussion involving Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden, and Hungary. They were joined by Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, for a useful discussion to prepare for the immediate future of the twelve stars, especially regarding the most sensitive decisions. 

There is no doubt that simplification and the elimination of cross-border barriers are two key issues in the draft European agenda, just as there is no doubt that a certain convergence emerges on this point. The real issue is economic: where will the necessary funds come from? This is the key question. Simplification alone is not enough. With some countries, starting from Germany, putting the brakes on the idea of new Eurobonds and new common debt, how can the EU and its competitiveness really be revitalised?

 “Competitiveness needs capital,” summarises European Parliament President Roberta Metsola in Alden Biesen, where she is meeting with leaders. She is not participating in the pre-summit with the 19 member countries, but upon her arrival, she clearly explains the underlying problem, the real one, the one that almost all the leaders have had the opportunity to discuss (those absent: Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain). It is above all on this issue that answers must be found, with states called upon to put aside national jealousies to create large European banking groups capable of financing major companies, as explicitly requested by the European Central Bank.