European Union - Amélie de Montchalin’s participation in the informal video conference of EU foreign affairs ministers (16 June 2020)

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Amélie de Montchalin, Minister of State for European Affairs, attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, will take part in the informal video conference of EU foreign affairs ministers on Tuesday, June 16.

The ministers will discuss the following points:

  1. Preparation of the June 19 videoconference of EU Council members, focusing mainly on the recovery plan and the 2021-2017 budget: The Minister of State will stress our support for the Commission’s proposal of May 27, which is commensurate with the crisis we are experiencing and represents a very good basis for discussions. She will reaffirm in particular our support for the Community Loan Mechanism and for the €500 billion in budget allocations proposed by the French-German initiative of May 18, which is vital to the credibility of this recovery plan. She will also reiterate that this recovery plan must be seen as a comprehensive package that includes the multiannual financial framework and own resources for the budget, consistent with the ecological and digital transitions and the strengthening of European sovereignty. In this regard, the minister will underscore the importance, in the upcoming multiannual budget, of packages contributing to European sovereignty such as the joint agricultural policy, defense and space policy.
  2. Negotiations on the future relationship between the EU and the United Kingdom: The EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, will present the ministers with the results of the high-level conference between the EU and the UK held on June 15 and will review the status of negotiations on the future relationship, which have been under way since March 2. The Minister of State will emphasize that member states must remain unified on both method and substance (in particular the governance framework of the future agreement, fisheries, and conditions of fair competition). The next steps must be taken calmly, taking all possible scenarios into account.
  3. Presentation of the Council’s work program for the next 18 months (July 1, 2020, through December 31, 2021): The next three Council presidencies (Germany, Portugal and Slovenia) will present the Council work program they developed in conjunction with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. France applauds the efforts of this new trio of presidencies for having placed the European response to the Covid-19 crisis at the heart of the EU 2019-2024 strategic agenda. The Conference on the Future of Europe will offer an opportunity to strengthen the EU with the direct participation of citizens, applying lessons learned from the crisis and offering solutions to make it more sovereign, united and inclusive.