Europäische Union: Von der Leyen kontert Merz und warnt vor starken Kürzungen EU-Haushalt
Bundeskanzler Merz fordert, den neuen EU-Etat um mehrere hundert Milliarden Euro zu kürzen. EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen erwartet in diesem Fall „erhebliche Einschränkungen“.
Brussels - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has cautioned against substantial cuts to the new multibillion-euro EU budget, as demanded by Germany. Speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, von der Leyen acknowledged the difficulty of meeting all constraints while also recognizing the challenging fiscal situation in member states.
However, she warned that "with significant reductions, we would impose considerable limitations on the priorities we all agreed upon collectively." The European Commission is currently debating the new Community budget for the years 2028 to 2034, proposing around 1.76 trillion euros inflation-adjusted (to 2025 prices) for various EU initiatives such as defense procurement, agriculture policy, structural funding, or the Erasmus exchange program.
Funded mainly through a share of member states' gross national income, Germany, as the largest economy in the EU, bears the highest contribution. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for a reduction in this budget approach by several hundred billion euros, forming an alliance with Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands against the Commission's plans.
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