On Wednesday 17 January, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called on the Bulgarian Presidency of the EU Council to be constructive concerning the procedure launched against Poland due to its rule of law shortfalls.
Speaking to European media on 11 January, Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boïko Borissov had said he hoped there would be no vote, although his minister in charge of the Presidency, Lilyana Pavlova, did not expect a decision to be taken by the end of June (see EUROPE 11937).
"I want to launch a call to the Bulgarian prime minister and his government to be constructive, to be ready for compromise in the area of the rule of law in Poland. One of the tasks of the Presidency is to try and seek a compromise. But the Presidency must also bring it about so that the decisions taken by the Council can be implemented", he said during a European Parliament debate on the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU. Juncker stated that the Commission was "not at war" with Warsaw, that it just had a difference of opinion, and that he thought it was important to stop saying that the Commission would do its utmost for sanctions to be taken against Poland. "The use of Article 7 is not a sanction. It is just a warning article", he said. Borissov did not respond to this remark.
A Presidency focusing on young people and the Balkans
Borissov preferred to give details of the Bulgarian Presidency's programme – a programme which won the support of MEPs. He stated that the future of Europe and young people were priorities. On behalf of the S&D, Spanish MEP Elena Valenciano said it was important to focus on social justice and to develop the social pillar of Europe. She added that "social justice is not possible if there is no fiscal justice". "The brain drain and youth unemployment are Europe's disease (...) This has an impact on growth in Europe. We must work hand in hand to find an effective solution", Fabio Massimo Castaldo stated (EFDD, Italy).
Bulgaria also wants to focus on the European outlook of the Western Balkans – a priority supported by MEPs. "I know we can say to them that the European outlook exists. The inhabitants of the Balkans firmly believe in accession. They feel European (...) What will happen if we do not help these countries, if there are no connections? The transport corridor is very important. We must come to the help of these countries through all the means possible, and give hope to young people", Borissov said, underlining the risk of radicalisation if this hope did not come about.
For Greek MEP Dimitrios Papadimoulis, speaking on behalf of the GUE/NGL, the Bulgarian Presidency could be "the ideal presidency to move ahead" in the Balkans issue, so that the region might not be "a powder keg" but "a bridge between the EU, and the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East".
Borissov also spoke about the digital economy, social issues, defence and the normalisation of relations between Turkey and Russia (see EUROPE 11938), and stability and security, including migration issues. "As regards migration, the European Parliament has done its work and the European Commission too. We are now waiting for the Council to take the necessary decisions", Valenciano said. For ALDE, her compatriot Javier Nart thought it was important to implement the reforms of the common asylum system, stating that "there is no immigration without integration and no integration without migration control".
Defining budget priorities before defining amount of it
The budget was also part of the discussion. Borissov supported maintaining the common agricultural policy and cohesion policy, explaining the benefits that the cohesion policy had brought in the 'new' European countries. "Thank you to the old countries which have invested in our economies to guarantee our development", he said. Like Juncker, German MEP Manfred Weber, speaking for the EPP, said the most important point in the debate on the multiannual financial framework was to first define the priorities, then define the funding needed. "We want an ambitious approach", he said.
The MEPs also supported Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen area and eurozone. Attacked on corruption by several MEPs, including by Germany's Ska Keller on behalf of the Greens, Borissov said that if corruption was as rampant as they said, politicians would not be re-elected. For Keller, chairing the Presidency of the EU Council is a good opportunity to take measures in the fight against corruption, and she criticised the fact that the measures already taken were ineffective or even had the opposite effect of the objective intended. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)