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The work of the EU's Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) concluded this afternoon in Brussels.Cyprus was represented by Finance Minister Makis Kerynos.
The Council was briefed by the Hungarian Presidency on its main priority areas for the next six months in the context of the Ecofin Council's work, including, inter alia, the implementation of the new economic governance framework, the promotion of actions to enhance competitiveness and deepen the capital markets union and the completion of the banking union.
In his intervention, Mr. Kerynos welcomed the priorities of the Hungarian Presidency and assured Cyprus' constructive cooperation towards the achievement of the Presidency's objectives. At the same time, he agreed with his counterparts who raised the need for continued action to provide support to Ukraine as a key priority, as long as Russia's aggression continues. Cyprus, he said, as itself a victim of an illegal invasion and continued occupation of territory that is European territory which in a few days will be 50 years old, continues to support the provision of assistance to Ukraine and therefore agrees that this issue should remain among the main priorities of the Council.
The Council also addressed the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, where member states were briefed by the European Commission and approved the amendments to the national recovery and resilience plans of Cyprus, Greece, Germany, Poland, Finland and Greece.
Furthermore, the Council approved country-specific recommendations under the European Semester for the coordination of member states' economic policies, as well as conclusions on the 2024 in-depth reviews under the macroeconomic imbalances procedure.
The Council also approved the EU's mandate ahead of a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors on 25-26 July.
Yesterday, Mr Thunder attended the Eurogroup, where ministers discussed, inter alia, the economic and budgetary situation in the euro area and adopted a joint communiqué on the fiscal policy guidelines for 2025. Ministers agreed on the need for euro area member states to undertake a gradual and sustainable consolidation of their public finances by 2025, given the need to reduce the high level of budget deficits and public debt. In this context, the need for a swift and consistent implementation of the new economic governance framework, the effective implementation of which is expected to lead to a restrictive fiscal policy for the euro area as a whole by 2025, was highlighted in particular.
In his intervention, Finance Minister Kerynos agreed that fiscal policy should be prudent, taking into account the current economic situation, the budgetary positions of Member States and the risks that the euro area continues to face. At the same time, he stressed the importance of not jeopardising Member States' growth prospects, noting the need to maintain a sufficient level of investment and, in this context, raising his concerns about how to promote investment at EU level after the termination of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism in 2026.
The Minister also said that particular emphasis should be placed on the implementation of structural reforms and investment in an effort to improve the competitiveness of the euro area. In conclusion, he agreed that the new economic governance framework is appropriate for achieving the fiscal policy objectives for 2025, stressing the importance of effective and consistent implementation of the new framework.
(BAT/NZ/NYAN)
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