The growth of the Eastern and Central European region continues to remain well above the European Union’s average, and therefore it plays a key role in the strengthening of the continent’s economy. Preserving the balance of the budget is a particular priority, and so climate targets must be defined in such a way that their funding remain sustainable in the long run.

At their meeting in Helsinki, EU finance ministers reviewed the EU’s current economic situation, Finance Minister Mihály Varga informed the press, observing that according to the European Commission’s latest projection, similar to the years before, the EU’s economic growth could stay lower. He said, according to expectations, the Eastern and Central European region and Hungary in it will continue to remain the EU’s fastest-growing territory.

One of the priority topics of the informal Ecofin meeting was the role finance ministers can play in the fight against climate change, the Minister said. He pointed out at the meeting that fiscal and financial policy as well as a variety of tools available for the planning of budgets can effectively support climate-friendly measures. These, however, cannot impose a disproportionately large burden on European or national industries, regions or citizens, and likewise cannot result in a perceivable competitive disadvantage compared with other economies.

The Finnish EU presidency treats the issue of so-called “hybrid threats” as a particular priority, and therefore the finance ministers discussed the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel’s background material which assessed challenges and, in this context, the resilience of the financial infrastructure. “Hybrid threats” include a much wider range of threats than cyber attacks; they can extend from disinformation to specific physical attacks on the infrastructure. Mr Varga said we agreed with the contents of the documents, and it is essential to enhance cooperation and information exchange in the interest of preparing for incidents and swiftly responding to and managing possible emergency events.

(Ministry of Finance/MTI)