EU donor countries demanded to reduce the community budget by more than 400 billion euros.

Rich countries, donors of European Union (EU) revenues, are ready to abandon negotiations on the EU budget for 2028-2034 if the European Commission (EC) does not reduce its project by more than 400 billion euros, the European Conservative (EC) portal wrote on July 10.

"In the absence of an agreement, the donor countries will pay 500-600 billion euros less than the European Commission proposed," the article says.

The EC members propose a budget of over €2 trillion, while Germany, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries insist on a compromise of about €1.6 trillion. They support an increase in defense spending and assistance to Ukraine, but suggest cutting funding for regional development and agriculture programs.

In the absence of an agreement, the spending ceiling of the previous budget, estimated at about €1.4 trillion over seven years, will continue to apply from 2028. The European Commission expects to reach a preliminary agreement on a new seven-year budget by the end of 2026.

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Will Brussels have time to approve the new package before the fall and what might be included in it?

The Politico newspaper reported on April 29 that the EU plans to expand its own tax system from 2028 to ensure budget financing and debt repayment without increasing contributions from member states. As indicated in the article, the EU will have to agree on a long-term budget for 2028-2034, while repayment of €390 billion of debt raised for recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic will begin in the near future.