Germany will succeed Croatia in the Presiency of the EU. In this context, an online Press Briefing was held yesterday where the outgoing Croatia gave an account of its achievements while Germany set its main priorities. Active News participated in the briefing an brings you the main points of what was discussed by the participating MEPs.

Katarina Barley (S&D): “The German Council Presidency comes at a fateful moment for Europe. We can only cope with the corona pandemic and its consequences together, everyone agrees on that. The Council Presidency must bring together the Member States, some of which are far apart, to find a common way out of the crisis. The European Parliament already proposed an ambitious recovery programme of two billion euros in May. The expectations of the German Council Presidency are high to bring about a compromise in the Council. From the Parliament’s point of view, this must include key points such as new EU own resources, a robust binding of EU funds to the rule of law and democracy, and a right of Parliament to have a say in the distribution of recovery funds. As Social Democrats in the Federal Government, we will attach special importance to gearing reconstruction towards social and ecological sustainability, for example by establishing a framework for minimum wages throughout Europe.“

Rainer Wieland (EPP): “The current discussions about the multiannual financial framework (MFF) and the recovery fund are interlinked: We will not be able to solve today’s challenges if we try to part these two topics. At the same time, solidarity has always been and is about benefits and obligations and here we do see that some countries have changed their position. I think that COVID-19 could be the gamer changer on the monetary discussion and the readiness to contribute to a solution.”

“If we really want to change the perception of the EU, we need to be serious about the Conference on the Future of Europe. Our citizens should not be left feeling like a dog barking against a wall. But at the same time, it must be clear that not every proposal that comes from a citizen is realistic or can be transformed into legislation unchanged and immediately.”

Tonino Picula (S&D): “The ultimate goal of each Presidency is for 27 member states to work together and achieve the best results for the EU and its citizens. Taking that into account, Croatian Presidency was under tough pressure and final results can’t be judged by the usual standards, due to extraordinary circumstances.” Picula also said that the Presidency made effort in the field of enlargement and mentioned the green light for opening of accession talks with Northern Macedonia and Albania. “Stabilizing Croatia’s closest neighbourhood is in the interest of all of us in the EU“, Picula concluded.

Željana Zovko (EPP) on the main achievements of the Croatian Presidency:

“The Croatian Presidency brought Western Balkans and enlargement back on the top of the European agenda. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, they managed to hold a successful Zagreb Summit, reaffirming the EU’s unequivocal commitment to the region’s European perspective.“

On the highest priority for the German Presidency:

“The German Presidency will be dominated by the European recovery of the Covid-19 crisis. Their main priority will therefore be the timely adoption of the Multi-annual Financial Framework and the Recovery package.”

You can watch here the Press Briefing:

Reporting: Panagiotis Sfaelos

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