Commission gives green light to fund its recovery plan with the votes against of the two Vice-Presidents, Margrethe Vestager and Frans Timmermans
Poland’s recovery plan has been approved by the European Commission since Wednesday. Brussels has taken nearly a year to approve the €35,400 million payout to the country and the decision went through with the vote against two of the Community Executive’s vice-chairs, Margrethe Vestager and Frans Timmermans. The plan must now receive the green light from the European Council within a month.
The negotiations between Brussels and Warsaw were a constant push and pull. The Union executive had made the disbursement of the next-generation funds conditional on taking measures against corruption and guarantees of respect for the rule of law, following the anti-democratic drift of the ultra-conservative government of Mateusz Morawiecki.
In March, Brussels consolidated its position and activated the conditionality mechanism allowing to freeze the supply of certain European funds to the country. The Court of Justice of the EU also drew the attention of the Polish authorities and called for the dismantling of the Supreme Court Disciplinary Chamber, as its activities endangered the independence of the judiciary.
However, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the relationship between the Community Executive and Warsaw has been on a sweet note. Poland is one of the Member States that has most strongly defended sanctions against Russia and has taken in a large number of refugees.
In any case, the funds will be subject to reforms that guarantee the independence of the country’s judiciary and to a series of specific milestones that will unlock aid in tranches. Brussels will monitor compliance with these targets and, on that basis, provide the EUR 23,900 million in direct payments and a further EUR 12,100 million in loans.
In addition to Poland, the Netherlands and Hungary are also waiting to receive the recovery aid that was activated during the pandemic. The Netherlands has not yet submitted a plan and the remains of Hungary have been blocked for violations of the rule of law.
Source: La Verdad
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