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Brussels – The discussions at the EU summit on Thursday on topics such as further support for Ukraine in defense or increasing European competitiveness were praised by Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala in front of journalists in the evening. He called it a success that the conclusions of the Brussels meeting included a call for the European Commission to present a reassessment of emissions fines for car manufacturers.
According to Fiala, the Czech Republic and other states are pushing the European Commission to reconsider the ban on the sale of new cars with combustion engines in 2035. The Czech Republic is also demanding a revision of the new ETS2 emission allowance system, which would lead to the expansion of these fees, the Prime Minister reminded.
“I spoke about how unrealistic environmental goals must not threaten our prosperity, how it is necessary to reassess the Green Deal and the pace of decarbonization so that it corresponds to current challenges,” the Prime Minister told Czech journalists. According to him, some other countries have now joined the Czech Republic in this matter. “In this matter, we are able to form coalitions and we will continue to do so,” added Fiala.
The Prime Minister recalled that the heads of state and governments of 26 EU countries agreed on conclusions regarding Ukraine in the afternoon, but, as before, this was done without Hungary. However, among other states, there is strong consensus on supporting Ukraine. According to Fiala, a well-armed Ukraine is a security guarantee for Europe, the Czech Republic also supports the proposal of the head of the EU diplomacy Kaja Kallas for a new military package worth 20 to 40 billion euros.
The main topic of the afternoon discussion was strengthening the competitiveness of the EU. According to Fiala, the Czech Republic has one main priority in this context, which is removing barriers in the internal market, especially in the service sector, which is very important for Czech companies. “What is also agreed and it is good is that we must reduce bureaucracy and lower burdens for companies. It is also necessary to generally reduce the complexity of regulations and rules. Approach radical simplification,” said the head of the Czech government. The European Commission has already presented some simplification packages, but according to the Czech Republic, it “should go even further”. “Europe must be strong. And today’s debate was conducted in that spirit, how to achieve greater prosperity in Europe, how to improve our competitiveness in the global environment, how to debureaucratize, and what to do to have successful companies operating in Europe,” he listed. (March 20)