BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders are unlikely to strike a deal on a new emissions-cutting target for 2030 at a summit this week if they cannot also clinch an agreement on the bloc’s next budget, a senior EU diplomat said on Monday.
Leaders will discuss a more ambitious 2030 climate target when they meet in Brussels on Thursday – but hopes of agreeing the goal have become mired in a dispute over the EU’s budget for 2021-2027 – known as the MFF – which Poland and Hungary are threatening to veto over upholding democratic standards.
“It will not be possible … (it is) difficult to see that it’s going to happen if there is no agreement on MFF,” the senior diplomat said. If leaders resolve the budget spat, then there is a “fair chance” they will reach a deal on the climate target, the diplomat said.
(Reporting by Kate Abnett, editing by Robin Emmott)
