What is not on the official agenda is the EU’s future relationship with Britain post-Brexit, since leaders have made clear that they won’t enter into negotiations with Theresa May’s government until formal notification of Britain’s is posted.
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The EU leaders have said they want to launch a “Bratislava Process” of reforms at this summit, to be further discussed in Malta early next year and then agreed in Rome in March 2017 to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the EU.
A senior EU official said former Polish premier Tusk-who has toured European capitals in recent weeks hearing the views of European leaders-wanted the Bratislava summit to “restore trust in the EU by showing that we got the (Brexit) message”.
Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern told CNBC as he arrived at the summit that it was “time to achieve some progress on the real issues (facing Europe) which are migration, security and social welfare and I’m quite optimistic that we’ll have good progress today”, he said.
On the migration front, a “large majority” of leaders have pledged to deploy guards and equipment to the border between Bulgaria and Turkey, as part of efforts to clamp down on migrant flows, the European Union official said.
Hollande said Britain’s vote to divorce with the European Union had triggered a crisis that threatened the bloc’s very existence and pressed on the 27 member states due in the Slovak capital to establish a calendar and road-map for reforms.
Instead they are expected to focus on areas where there is common ground, pledging closer defense cooperation, bolstering security at the EU’s external borders and boosting the capacity of an European Union investment fund meant to generate growth and jobs.
The president of the European Council, Donald Tusk, said the mood among the remaining members of the political and economic alliance was “sober but not defeatist”.
EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the member states agreed to award 108 million euros ($121 million) in emergency funding to Bulgaria for border management at one of the most porous borders with Turkey. “Our common Europe is worth it”, said Kiska. I think it’s unfortunate to have a summit without Britain as they are still a member.
But former Liberal Democrat leader Lord (Menzies) Campbell said there was nothing the United Kingdom can do after Brexit to protect North Atlantic Treaty Organisation from the potentially damaging effect of an EU army because it will not be able to veto its creation from outside the union.
Hollande is under intense pressure to come with some success as he is trailing in the polls ahead of next May’s French presidential elections.
Orban said that while the EU leaders had voted for voluntary refugee resettlement quotas, the EU parliament and the EU Commission transformed them into mandatory quotas.
In a further sign of the tensions over migration, Luxembourg’s foreign minister this week called for Hungary to be suspended from the bloc for treating refugees from war-torn Syria and other countries like “animals”.
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Europe’s weak economy also hampers European Union efforts to make common cause. Mediterranean countries balk at German austerity edicts. “We won’t continue as we have until now”, said Tusk. This is given. We have no choice but to solve them.
