EU states struggle to agree on new taxes for next long-term budget
EU leaders are engaged in intense talks this week over new revenue sources for the bloc's next seven-year budget, including a proposal to use frozen Russian assets to back a loan for Ukraine.
The European Union is engaged in active negotiations over how to fund its next long-term, seven-year budget, with several recent developments illustrating how difficult reaching a deal will be.
Germany has floated the idea of a new loan for Ukraine backed by frozen Russian assets. According to diplomats and officials, such a scheme would help reduce the overall size needed for the EU's next long-term budget.
European Council President António Costa met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz last week for budget talks, days after a political setback in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Costa said new EU-level taxes would reduce member states' direct payments to Brussels.
France, meanwhile, has called for new EU taxes to raise €60 billion for the bloc's budget needs. However, most national governments are resisting the introduction of new levies intended to finance the next seven-year spending plan.
Seeking common ground, Costa has embarked on a tour of EU capitals — dubbed his "grand budget tour" — visiting Berlin, Warsaw and Madrid in an effort to find a solution on new revenue sources that member states can accept.
