President Costa manages competing demands in multi-annual budget negotiations

European Council President António Costa is touring EU capitals in search of a compromise on the bloc’s next long-term budget amidst governments demanding more spending on defense, competitiveness, and Ukraine.

Speaking to TVP World, Professorial Research Fellow Iain Begg explained, "The only way you're going to be able to spend more on defense or defense-related elements of the EU budget is by cutting the two biggest programs which have dominated the EU budget over decades, that is, agricultural support, and cohesion policy support.”