15.06.2023
Next week the European Commission (EC) will release a review of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) of the European Union – the document that sets the ceilings of the EU spending from 2021 to 2027. While it is expected that a proposal would be made to readjust it, the readjustment will not concern disbursements under the Cohesion Fund and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
This was announced by Johannes Hahn, the European Commissioner for Budget and Administration, at the meeting with Prime Minister Acad. Nikolai Denkov. The Commissioner also met with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mariya Gabriel.
The mid-term review of the Multiannual Financial Frame is necessitated by the multiple crises that could not have been foreseen when the MFF was approved in 2020: the consequences of the covid pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the inflation that these two mishaps provoked, the Commissioner explained.
It is planned to develop new financial instruments. The Commission will propose, for example, a European Sovereignty Fund to finance companies that operate in areas that are strategic for the EU. The aim is to step up Europe’s industrial and technological development in areas with high potential such as green technologies and biotechnologies and the transition to a digital economy. Also, it is expected to bring about greater flexibility in the absorption of resources from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
Prime Minister Acad. Nikolai Denkov and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mariya Gabriel informed Commissioner Johannes Hahn that Bulgaria’s accession to the Schengen Area this year is a major priority of the government. The Prime Minister also emphasized Bulgaria’s efforts to meet the criteria for Eurozone membership.
Regarding the implementation of the national Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), Bulgaria’s Deputy Prime Minister stated that the country’s most urgent task is to complete the stages and achieve the objectives included in the second tranche so that Bulgaria may receive a second disbursement this year.
Commissioner Johannes Hahn welcomed the formation of a regular Bulgarian government with a clear European direction and pledged the Commission’s support.
