The European Council on 27 and 28 June will take note of the work of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union on the reforms to be carried out to ensure that the enlarged EU is in a position to deal effectively with the economic and geopolitical challenges it will face in the medium term.
In the conclusions they adopt, the EU27 will ask the Commission to present, in spring 2025, a detailed assessment of EU policies in the following four areas: - values and respect for the rule of law; - competitiveness and economic sovereignty; - the future of the EU budget; - institutional governance.
Fundamental values. The Belgian Presidency recalls that the EU is first and foremost a Union of values, founded on respect for the rule of law and democracy. The EU and the candidate countries must constantly ensure that the rule of law remains at the heart of the EU itself and of the accession process, she writes in her progress report.
In her view, the Member States consider that the rule of law toolbox is already “well equipped” and that, if used to its full potential, it would enable further progress to be made. Further thought should therefore be given to how these tools can be further strengthened (timetable, possible suspension of voting rights). But a revision of the Treaties in this respect is not considered desirable at this stage, according to the Belgian authorities.
The report also highlights the effectiveness of the 'conditionality/rule of law' regulation.
EU policies. Bearing in mind the EU's long-term objectives (see EUROPE 13438/19), reflection on the future of European policies will have to focus on those which will be most affected by enlargement and/or which need to be strengthened, including following the succession of crises which have affected Europe.
These include the single market, competitiveness, the Common Agricultural Policy and cohesion policy, as well as freedom, security and justice, the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP).
Budget. The Belgian Presidency is placing the multiannual financial framework (MFF) at the centre of the current and future challenges faced by the EU (Russian military aggression in Ukraine, accession of new countries, climate transition). Against this exceptional backdrop, security and defence should be given greater consideration in the negotiations for the next 2028-2035 MFF, with the Commission being invited to make a proposal in July 2025.
On the revenue side of the EU budget, no consensus has been reached on the new own resources proposed by the Commission in June 2023 (see EUROPE 13205/2). The Council recalls that the EU is bound by the deadline of 1 January 2028 to repay the debt contracted by the Next Generation EU recovery plan.
There are differences of opinion between Member States on the timetable for negotiations on new resources. Some countries are in favour of discussions taking place at the same time as the next multiannual framework (2028-2032), while others are calling for prior agreement. The introduction of new own resources should be guided, according to some Member States, by a fair sharing of the financial burden.
The Member States also want “genuine own resources”, i.e. resources that do not come from national budgets.
Governance of the EU. According to the Belgian Presidency, the Member States are favouring” a pragmatic approach” to developing the governance of the European Union, particularly the decision-making process in the Council. The first step will be to explore the flexibilities in the current Treaties, such as the increased use of qualified majority voting by Member States in the Council in certain areas (CFSP, social policies, taxation and the internal market) via passerelle clauses. The importance of an accompanying mechanism to safeguard the vital interests of Member States was reiterated.
Where unanimity is the voting rule, the possibility of greater recourse to constructive abstention in the context of the CFSP has been explored, according to the Belgian authorities. The same applies to the possibility of limiting the right of veto to a commitment by Member States to restrict it to “vital reasons”, and of requiring EU countries to explain their vote when exercising their veto.
See the report by the Belgian Presidency of the Council: https://aeur.eu/f/csx
See the revised draft strategic agenda: https://aeur.eu/f/csj
See the draft conclusions of the European Council on 27 and 28 June: https://aeur.eu/f/csf (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic, Florent Servia, Mathieu Bion)