Lithuania wants EU’s 2014-2020 budget to narrow the gap between member states

Euro.lt

 

On 15 November at the European Union’s General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis said that the EU had to further the cohesion policy’s principle, i.e., to reduce economic, social and territorial disparities between the EU member states and to give high priority to the concerns of the least developed regions.

The ministerial meeting focused on the EU’s cohesion policy and the planned financing of the Common Agriculture Policy and of the ‘Connecting Europe’ facility in the EU’s multiannual financial framework for 2014-2020.

 

“Lithuania cannot approve of the proposed reduction of the EU’s structural support from the EU’s 2014-2020 budget, as compared with the current 2007-2013 Financial Perspectives,” said A.Ažubalis.

 

The European Commission has proposed that the EU’s structural support should not exceed 2.5% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). This would considerably reduce support to Lithuania and another three member states: Estonia, Latvia and Hungary. Their economic development would not reach that of the EU average, which would undermine their competitiveness. Lithuania would receive less assistance because its GDP has fallen, even though the country was able to independently cope with the crisis.

 

On 23 October, President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso acquainted the EU heads of state with statistics, which showed that Lithuania was a leader in the absorption of the EU structural support funds.

 

During the ministerial meeting, Hungary on behalf of 13 EU member states, including Lithuania, issued a joint statement on a strong cohesion policy and its key elements, the main provisions of which were agreed upon at the meeting of the Group of Friends of the EU Cohesion Policy on 10 November in Budapest.

 

During the discussion, Lithuania underlined the necessity to create a just and fair system for the distribution of agricultural direct payments between the EU member states and asked the European Commission to introduce more clarity with regard to the ‘Connecting Europe’ facility, a new instrument aimed at accelerating infrastructure development in transport across the EU.

 

“Lithuania needs for a fair and just budget. The European Commission’s proposal mostly discriminates only three member states with regard to the Common Agriculture Policy and four member states with regard to cohesion policy,” said A.Ažubalis.

 

Lithuanian Foreign Minister also reminded of the EU’s commitments to adequately finance the closure of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant and said that the European Commission’s proposal was completely unacceptable.

 

“The European Union must fulfill its promise to finance the closure process to the end. Lithuania is doing what nobody has before – dismantling a Chernobyl-type reactor. Lithuania is carrying out its contractual obligations and hopes that the European Union will do the same, because we are talking about everyone’s safety,” said A.Ažubalis.

 

The Minister pointed out that it was set out in the Treaty of Accession to the EU that the closure of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant was an unprecedented process, inadequate of the country’s size and economic capacity, therefore, the EU committed itself in solidarity to provide adequate financial assistance.

 

18-11-2011