During a two-day summit in Brussels last week, European leaders paid tribute to outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel and discussed issues regarding Poland, Belarus, and the ongoing energy crisis.
Merkel is currently leading Germany’s caretaker government and will remain in office until a new coalition government is formed. The summit was Merkel’s 107th as a German Chancellor and her last after 16 years in office.
European Council President Charles Michel said of Merkel: “Your farewell to the European stage touches us politically and fills us with emotion.” He also praised Merkel’s wisdom and diplomacy during delicate times.
Concerning the energy crisis, the leaders endorsed the approach presented by the European Commission last week, including a reduction in taxes and aid for struggling companies and direct financial support for vulnerable households. The Commission noted that these measures must be temporary, tailored, and targeted to avoid forceful intervention.
The leaders are likely to discuss structural reforms, including creating strategic gas reserves, decoupling electricity and natural gas prices, and voluntary joint procurement of energy supplies to address the energy crunch in the upcoming meeting of national ministers and the successive summit in December.
European leaders have expressed concern over soaring energy prices across the bloc and the burden placed on households, blaming Russia for attempting to create a crisis by not meeting the bloc’s energy demands.
Following the talks on the energy crisis, the leaders discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and committed to fighting vaccine disinformation, measures to boost cross-border movement, and international aid for developing countries.
Regarding the European Union’s (EU) dispute with Poland over the supremacy of EU law, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki expressed his support for the Polish Constitutional Court’s ruling, which stated that some parts of the EU law are incompatible with the Polish constitution. The Court order questioned the supremacy of the EU law and raised fears about Poland’s exit from the bloc. In this regard, the leaders reaffirmed the importance of the rule of law and an independent judiciary and agreed to negotiate with Poland for a feasible solution.
Additionally, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen promised to use all executive measures to reaffirm the supremacy of EU law in Poland. These measures could include a new infringement procedure or the freezing of EU funds as per the new conditionality mechanism. She also urged Poland to comply with the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) previous order to dismantle its disciplinary chamber of judges and reinstate judges who were arbitrarily removed.
Apart from this, the leaders discussed illegal migration and the ongoing dispute with Belarus. Eastern European nations, including Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, have accused Belarus of flying in migrants from Iraq to create a migration crisis at the EU border. During the meeting, Poland and the Baltic countries demanded EU funding to build fences along the border to push back illegal migrants.
However, due to a lack of consensus, the leaders couldn’t reach a concrete solution and decided to allocate more money to countries like Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt to host the refugees and called for a new round of sanctions on Belarusian authorities.
EU Leaders Pay Tribute to Germany’s Merkel, Discuss Poland, Energy Crisis at Summit
European leaders bid farewell to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and thanked her for her contribution to the European Union. They also discussed the ongoing energy crisis, Poland, and Belarus.
October 25, 2021
SOURCE: AXIOS