Finance Minister Tánczos Barna: “Romania supports the increase in the European Union’s defense capacity”

The Finance Ministers in the European Union met on March 10-11 in Brussels to continue discussions on defence financing solutions, on the sidelines of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) and the Eurogroup in enlarged format (EU27), at which Romania was represented by Tánczos Barna, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.

Following the conclusions on defence financing of the European Council of 6 March this year, the EU Finance Ministers expressed their agreement to support common solutions, with work on this issue set to continue at an accelerated pace, after the European Commission presents concrete proposals.

The “Rearming Europe” package, advanced by the Commission and supported by leaders in the European Council, includes, among other things, a new financial instrument through which Member States can access guaranteed loans from the EU budget worth up to EUR 150 billion, as well as a more flexible fiscal treatment of defence spending in the Stability and Growth Pact.

“The European Union needs an increased defense capacity, and solutions regarding the increase in spending for this sector must take into account the need to ensure greater predictability for the European military industry, through a more efficient mobilization of private and public investments. We support a European financing solution, using guarantees from the EU budget, to ensure the best possible financing conditions, with a reduced impact on national budgets. At the same time, for Romania, budgetary consolidation remains a priority. We continue the construction of highways and hospitals, the development of local communities and supporting businesses, for which we have allocated record funds this year. At the European level, increasing competitiveness must also be supported by reducing the administrative burdens of companies, and Romania supports the implementation of the Commission’s proposals in this regard as soon as possible,” Tánczos Barna stated.

At the ECOFIN meeting, ministers exchanged views on the set of “Omnibus proposals” aimed at simplifying various legislative acts, with the aim of contributing to reducing administrative burdens by at least 25% and by at least 35% for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

“Romania supports the need to simplify the regulatory framework in the tax area for the benefit of businesses, including by reducing reporting burdens and eliminating overlapping provisions. Simplifying the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is essential for carbon-intensive sectors. The proposal, also supported by Romania, aims to exempt small importers (under 50 tonnes per year) in the cement, fertilisers, electricity, aluminium, iron and steel sectors from the scope. Thus, 90% of importers, especially SMEs and individuals, are exempted, while reporting procedures are simplified for large importers, who are responsible for 99% of emissions. These measures should lead to maintaining competitiveness in this area,” stressed Tánczos Barna.

The current state of the impact of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the adoption of revised recovery and resilience plans by Ireland and Belgium, and a briefing on the G20 meetings completed the agenda of the ECOFIN meeting.