Bulgaria and 16 Other EU Member States Have Called for Cohesion Policy Funds to Be Maintained in the New Multiannual Financial Framework

Prime Minister Rumen Radev and the leaders of 16 other EU member states have called for cohesion policy funding to be maintained in the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework for 2028–2034, the government press office said on October 5.

In a joint letter to European Council President António Costa and Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, the European leaders called for funding for Cohesion Policy and the Common Agricultural Policy to be preserved. The letter warns that reducing funding would not modernise the EU budget, but instead weaken it and risk undermining public support for the European project.

The leaders of the 17 member states stressed the importance of the two long-standing policies to economies across the EU. They promote convergence between countries and regions, strengthen the single market and contribute to Europe’s competitiveness and food security. The objectives of Cohesion Policy and the Common Agricultural Policy are more relevant than ever, the letter states.

The member states called for the EU’s new priorities, amid growing challenges in security and defence, competitiveness, energy security and resilience, to be backed by adequate additional resources, without this coming at the expense of funding for Cohesion Policy and agriculture.

The countries expressed their readiness to work constructively on the revenue side of the EU budget, including proposals for new own resources, as well as on other options for securing the funding needed for the EU’s new priorities.

In conclusion, the 17 member states called on the Irish presidency to take their position into account when preparing the next negotiating framework and said they were ready to work towards an ambitious, balanced and adequately funded Multiannual Financial Framework for 2028–2034.