European funds: agreement at the European Council on the revision of the MFF 2021-27

In addition to the 50 billion for Ukraine, the mid-term review of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 agreed by EU leaders on February 1 increases allocations for migration, defense and emergency aid. Reduced investment in STEP, which-except for European Defense Fund investments-gets only more flexible use of already available European funding. While several programmes - from Horizon to NDCI - lose resources to fund new priorities.

The February 1 Special European Council thus broke the stalemate determined by Budapest in December, when the historic step of opening accession negotiations for Ukraine and Moldova to join the EU had been accompanied by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's veto of support for Kiev, envisaged by the European Commission as part of the revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027. The revision passes through a unanimous agreement, reached yesterday thanks to the provision of a possible review of the aid package to Ukraine in two years' time.

The compromise among the 27 must now be followed by an agreement with the European Parliament, before the end of its term and the 2024 European elections.

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