Kaljulaid: EU budget must correspond to changed circumstances
Speaking at the Globsec international security forum in Bratislava on Saturday, President Kersti Kaljulaid said that the budget of the EU must correspond to changed circumstances.
"The euro and the migration crisis as well as the changed security situation are difficulties through which the EU will develop," Kaljulaid said. "We will not retreat. Coping with the challenges facing Europe shows the ability of member states to adhere to set values. Development definitely implies financial costs and the EU's budgetary decisions must correspond to the new circumstances."
The EU must move forward, evolve and develop, said the Estonian president. "More important than speed is to move together with member states toward the same goals," she noted, adding that the EU budget must definitely be based on the union's primary goals and provide money to those specific fields as agreed.
Kaljulaid said that the EU must contribute more than ever to the creation of a digital single market and become more digital in various other fields.
"A digital society is a society of the future," she explained. "It will allow countries to exchange information in real time, which today is of key importance when it comes to security."
Kaljulaid participated in the Globsec international security forum on Saturday, where she spoke on a panel about the future of Europe alongside Slovakian Minister of Finance Peter Kažimír, former Polish Prime Minister Jan Krzysztof Bielecki, Jacques Delors Institute director Yves Bertoncini and State Secretary of the Slovakian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Ivan Korcok.
Bringing together opinion leaders in European foreign and security policy as well as politicans and representatives of think tanks, Globsec is the most high-level security forum in Central Europe.
Editor: Aili Vahtla
Source: BNS