European Council President António Costa said the European Union needs to agree a new long-term budget by the end of this year, after meeting Romania’s President Nicușor Dan in Bucharest.
Costa said EU leaders will soon have to take a “major decision” on the bloc’s long-term budget, which sets priorities and spending limits for several years, and that an agreement is needed before the end of 2026, the European Council announced on Thursday.
He declared that the EU is operating in a “fundamentally different geopolitical context” from when the current budget was approved in 2020, and argued this requires a new approach, including a new structure and a new way of allocating resources.
Costa listed defence and security, competitiveness and innovation, and “strategic resilience” among the priorities the next budget should support, while also continuing to underpin cohesion and agricultural policies.
He also said national contributions should stay within “reasonable limits”, and pointed to a package of “new own resources” — EU-level revenue streams — as a key part of any final budget deal.
Security concerns on Romania’s eastern border
Costa stated that recent violations of Romanian airspace and incidents involving naval drones were “deeply concerning”, and said the EU would “stand firmly with Romania.”
He said EU unity in supporting Ukraine “will not be broken” by what he described as Russian attempts to intimidate or divide the bloc, and praised Romania’s support for Ukraine.
Costa also thanked Romania for backing Moldova’s path towards EU membership and said the enlargement process is “merit-based” and has reached “several key milestones” this year.
