German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) is pushing for major EU reform decisions to be made this year. After an informal EU summit in Belgium, he stressed that the European Union must act swiftly and decisively, a determination that was affirmed by all participants. “We have essentially commissioned a comprehensive and ambitious agenda” Merz said. The Commission has committed to producing a roadmap that should be adopted at the next European Council on March 19 in Brussels, and that roadmap is expected to include an “all‑encompassing and ambitious competitiveness agenda”.
While consensus exists on most topics, Merz remains firm on common debt. He clarified this morning that he cannot support financing EU initiatives through Eurobonds, even if others think otherwise. “I do not want it, and even if I did, I could not, because the Federal Constitutional Court has set very clear limits for the German government” he pointed out.
Discussions about EU financing will continue over the coming weeks and months. “It will be a very difficult undertaking, but the next medium‑term financial framework is slated for a vote in the coming months” Merz added. Common debt played only a peripheral role at the informal summit.
