22 June 2005

The European Union's Brussels summit on June 16-17 ended in a spectacular fiasco. European leaders are now pondering ways to overcome the crisis and approve a common budget. Meanwhile, the issue of the European constitution remains open.

Jean-Claude Juncker, prime minister of Luxembourg, which is holding the presidency of the EU until the end of June, tried to save the compromise until the last minute. However, his proposal on freezing the British rebate for payments to the EU budget at 5.5 billion euros was rejected by British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Five countries rejected the compromise budget: Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain and Finland. Italy and Denmark abstained. Juncker concluded that agreement was unlikely to be reached anytime soon.

When a summit fiasco seemed a near certainty, the 10 new EU member states led by Poland expressed a readiness to resign from some EU funds to save the 2007-13 budget. Even this drastic move did not produce results. France's President Jacques Chirac (pictured) said that the gesture made by the new EU countries contrasted with the "egotism of two or three rich countries." On the other hand, the EU heads of state and government leaders meeting in Brussels upheld the idea of the EU Constitutional Treaty and stressed that it was not a dead issue. They rejected a possible renegotiation of the treaty and committed themselves to continuing the ratification process. Still, they repealed its deadline, originally set for November 2006. From now until June 2006, when a special EU summit will be held, this should be a period of "debates and consideration" about the constitution.

Poland's President Aleksander Kwaśniewski said that he did not consider the fiasco of the European summit in Brussels a reason for deep pessimism. "Certainly, there's no reason for joy, but, on the other hand, the more communities in Europe show European determination and carry out great European projects, the greater the chance for us to overcome this problem-I'm still not calling this a crisis," said Kwaśniewski.

He added that he would make the decision on the constitutional referendum after consultation and collecting information about the EU summit and the activities of EU partners. "There's no doubt that if this debate in Europe is to be alive and if there is to be time for it, the referendum date needs to be moved. If, on the other hand, there's an expectation that each country will make its own decision, which is understandable, we just have to go ahead and make it," the president said.

Prime Minister Marek Belka admitted he was disillusioned, saying that the EU was in serious crisis. In Belka's opinion, the lack of agreement results from the "egotism displayed by the richest EU countries." Referring to the last-minute proposal by Juncker, Belka said, "We should return to compromise. We have a good starting point for further negotiations." Belka added that, in keeping with the latest proposal by Luxembourg, Poland could expect 80 billion euros from the EU coffers in 2007-13, which means 60.5-61 billion euros after membership fees are deducted.

"There is hope that a compromise will be worked out over the next six months," said Belka, explaining that he had discussed this subject with Blair, whose country is taking over the EU presidency as of July 1. Blair reportedly said that under the British presidency, compromise might prove easier to achieve.

Belka admitted that there was a crisis in the EU. "We now need more than just reflection," he said at a news conference after returning from Brussels. "We need an active, serious and frank debate. Europe is also in desperate need of leadership." He emphasized that Poland should continue to show pro-European involvement. Asked if Poland still intended to hold a referendum on the EU constitution in the fall, following the rejection of the EU Constitutional Treaty idea in France and the Netherlands and postponed referenda in the Czech Republic, Denmark and Britain, Belka said, "This requires serious consideration."

Danuta Hübner, EU commissioner for regional policy, called for a special EU summit by the end of this month. "Without prompt agreement on the medium-term budget, there may be a delay in planning programs for supporting poor regions and the payment of funds," she said. In Hübner's opinion, the current blockade of funds particularly threatens new EU countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Because these countries are not yet fully included in the current financial plan, without quick agreement, they will receive less money from 2007 than they deserve on the basis of their economic condition.

Donald Tusk, leader of the opposition Civic Platform (PO) and its presidential candidate, agreed that the summit outcome created a serious problem for Poland, primarily because, in every version of the budget, Poland was to be the largest recipient of EU assistance.

"An EU without a common budget is pointless," said Tusk. Referring to the failure of the talks, he said, "Not everyone, especially not the most affluent and comfortable, is prepared to accept a Europe based on solidarity and internal competition."

In Tusk's opinion, it must be "confirmed without a doubt that Poland is the state most interested in making sure that the EU not only continues but relies on solidarity and integration."

Referring to the issue of the constitutional referendum in Poland, Tusk said that holding it now would be pointless. "Under the current conditions, it will be lost," Tusk said.

Ludwik Dorn, head of the parliamentary group of Law and Justice (PiS), said that the Brussels summit marked a return to "national egoism" particularly in the richest EU countries. In his opinion, this points to the "fragmentation of fundamental beliefs at the core of the European Union."

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