“In order to be competitive, the European Union must not continue the state aid race, but must focus on its strengths. The most important among them is the single market working on equal conditions and with nearly 500 million consumers, allowing European businesses to grow strongly,” said Kaja Kallas.
Today, the European Commission is disbursing 238.5 million euros in performance-based funding for recovery and resilience for Estonia. Although Estonia was the first to renew its recovery plan and launch the investment measure for the just transition plan, Kaja Kallas said that Estonia is concerned about the tight deadlines for the funds.
“We have launched ambitious reforms and investments, but we have less than three years to implement them. In fast-changing circumstances, performance-based EU investments should allow for more flexible support,” she said.
In her meeting with Dombrovskis, Kallas expressed hope that the assessment of the European Commission of Ukraine’s implementation of the seven-step reform plan proposed by the Commission, expected next Wednesday, will be positive and that accession negotiations with Kyiv will be opened before the end of the year. “Ukraine has shown determination and political will and has made incredible progress on reforms in the face of extremely difficult war conditions, and we are working to open accession negotiations this year,” said Kallas.
Kallas stressed that she is looking forward to the European Commission’s proposal for a European-wide solution for the use of frozen Russian assets for the reconstruction of Ukraine, ahead of the Council in December. “We also need to decide on long-term support for Ukraine before the end of the year,” Kallas added.
The prime minister and the vice-president also discussed foreign trade matters, including trade relations with the US, and Kaja Kallas gave an overview of the investigation into the damage to the Balticconnector gas pipeline.
More information on Estonia’s progress in using the funds of the recovery instrument: https://estonia.representation.ec.europa.eu/uudised/komisjon-maksab-taasterahastust-eestile-valja-esimesed-2385-miljonit-eurot-2023-11-06_et
Photos: Raul Mee https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB2fzc
