The two-day summit kicked off this morning in Brussels. On the energy dossier, Italy aims to obtain margins of flexibility, but we learn from European sources that the only extraordinary measures in place with "short-term" effect will be state aid, on which the EU will extend the temporary framework for energy. Competitiveness and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East were also at the center of the debate. German Chancellor Merz: "Sharply cut the EU budget"
The European Council kicked off today - for two days - with a very packed agenda. The issue of high energy costs stands out: above all, the question of the revision of the ETS is dividing. Italy then continues its push to obtain greater fiscal flexibility, even if, we learn from qualified sources, the only extraordinary measures in place with "short-term" effect are state aid, on which the EU will extend the temporary framework for energy. At the moment Brussels does not plan further interventions. Ukraine and the Middle East are also on the table. On Kiev, "the important thing is that Europe has a spokesperson authorized to negotiate in the name and on behalf of the entire Union. In order to count more, Europe needs to have a spokesperson for everyone. The important thing is that this is decided quickly", said the Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, on the sidelines of the EPP pre-summit in Brussels.
Merz: "Sharply cut the EU budget"
"We must significantly reduce the common budget compared to the proposals", because "no EU member state can afford to pay contributions of this magnitude", said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz upon his arrival at the summit, predicting "very, very difficult" negotiations.
The energy issue: divides the point on ETS
The discussion on energy prices is difficult, as expected. What divides the 27 is what to write in the paragraph relating to the ETS system, among the most delicate points of the summit. On the one hand, Italy, Greece and the four Visegrad countries - according to what we learn from several European sources - aim to soften the ETS defense envisaged in the draft conclusions. But, on this point, there is no unity among the member countries. On the opposite side, in fact, the Nordics lead the group who do not want any step backwards on the European CO2 quota market. Before the summit, the prime ministers of Finland, Denmark and Sweden in a letter to the President of the EU Council, Antonio Costa, wrote that the ETS system "has been the main driver of this transition" and any "weakening would undermine the predictability on which investment decisions depend and risk slowing down the pace of industrial decarbonisation". The risk of weakening “is to shift the burden of emissions reductions to other sectors of the economy,” they say.
Today's other topics
There is also room for the issue of global macroeconomic imbalances. The topic of the afternoon is the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF or MFF 2028-34). During dinner a "strategic" discussion on the enlargement of the Union and the reforms that must be made within it to welcome new members.
Rome and the Friends of Cohesion work as a platform to negotiate on the budget
In the morning, Meloni chaired a working lunch on the EU's multiannual budget 2028-2034 among the 17 countries of the "Friends of Cohesion" group. In parallel, another meeting of the so-called frugals was held: Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Austria, Sweden, Finland and Belgium. Italy, according to what ANSA understands, is working on the creation of a common platform with the Friends of Cohesion with which to address the decisive phases of the negotiation on the multiannual EU budget. The platform contains points considered essential for an agreement. These include no to new budget cuts, support for the CAP and Cohesion not only in funding but also in application rules, no to rebates, the inclusion of balanced own resources. The negotiation, we learn, has brought out a fact: the new own resources have different economic impacts depending on the member countries.
The program of the second day and the presence of Zelensky
For the second day, however, we will start from the war in Ukraine: the leaders will listen to President Volodymyr Zelensky on the latest developments in the conflict. "I am already in Brussels with my team to participate in the European Council meeting and hold talks with our allies", the Ukrainian president said today via social media, who tomorrow will have "meetings with the presidents of the European Council and the European Commission, as well as with the prime ministers of Hungary, Finland and Sweden". But tomorrow there will also be space for the themes of defence, security and migration. At the end of the meeting there will be the final press conference with the presidents Antonio Costa and Ursula von der Leyen.
Meloni-Moscow tensions
Yesterday Prime Minister Meloni, in her communications to the Senate in view of the European summit, underlined that energy is "the issue that weighs most heavily on our economy today": "No one", she said, "can respond effectively alone". But there was also a distant back and forth between Meloni and Moscow on the agreement on Russian diesel reached by Trump and Putin. The Prime Minister said that "Trump's agreement is risky because it legitimizes Moscow". From the Kremlin, quickly, the reply: "It's not Meloni's business." And today another criticism came from Moscow to the European countries accused of having taken "a destructive position" on the agreement.
