site.btaEU Affairs Council Approves National Positions

EU Affairs Council Approves National Positions

Sofia, November 8 (BTA) - Bulgaria's EU Affairs Council approved the positions which the country will defend during four meetings of the Council of the European Union in Brussels between November 11 and 16, the government press service said on Tuesday. The meetings will be held in various configurations.

The Economic and Financial Affairs (Budget) Council on November 16 will discuss the draft of the EU budget for 2017 and correcting budgets for 2016. Bulgaria will insist that the 2017 budget must be approved on time in order to avoid delays in the implementation of programmes and projects. The country will support all three proposed correcting budgets for 2016 aimed at updating budget loans relevant to security and migration, the European Fund for Strategic Investments and the Emergency Assistance Instrument. Sofia will also back a proposed recalculation of the contributions owed by the member states to the EU budget for 2014, 2015 and 2016, and the use of the Solidarity Fund to mitigate the effects of floods in Germany in 2016.

During the General Affairs (Cohesion Policy) Council on November 16, Bulgaria will support the European Commission's intention to simplify the procedures and reduce the administrative burden on beneficiaries of the EU's structural and investment funds by amending Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013.

The other two meetings are of the Foreign Affairs (Trade) Council (November 11) and the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (November 14 and 15).