Informal videoconference of the Ministers of European Affairs
17.11.2020
The developments regarding the EU budget, preparations for the next meeting of heads of state and government, the annual rule of law dialogue and the EU enlargement process were the main topics of the videoconference of ministers responsible for the European issues. Poland was represented by the Minister for European Union Affairs, Konrad Szymański.
During the meeting, a discussion was held on the current situation related to the impossibility of adopting the budget package. “For Poland, conditionality and protection of the budget is not a problem, but it is the lack of legal certainty and legal guarantees for all individual member states under the treaty. We simply need a better compromise now.” - emphasized Minister Szymanski.
As part of the preparations of the European Council, the ministers referred to the challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the adoption of the 55% reduction target by 2030, trade policy, EU external affairs and terrorism.
During the videoconference, the first debate on the rule of law in individual Member States was held, based on a report by the European Commission. The assessed group included: Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark and Estonia.
Ministers also discussed the state of play of the discussions on the general EU position and the procedures for accession negotiations in relation to the Republic of North Macedonia and the Republic of Albania. The overwhelming majority of ministers expressed a desire to speed up the work, but for one Member State the current text is unacceptable, which puts a stop to the process.