The president of the Community Executive, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the bloc will respect contracts with Russia and will continue to pay coal, gas and oil in euros or dollars. The European Union will strictly abide by contracts with Russia and will continue to pay in euros or dollars for the supply of coal, gas and oil, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday in Sofia.
“The contracts are very clear. They say that the payment is in euro or in dollars. At the moment we consider these contracts very carefully, but at first glance it seems that we are going to respect them and we will pay in euros and not in rubles,” the president said in Sofia, during a press conference with Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov.
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Von der Leyen added that Russian President Vladimir Putin's decree requiring payments to be in Russian currency is being studied, stating that the EU will have “a common stance” on the matter.
Von der Leyen is in Bulgaria to deliver the Brussels evaluation of the Recovery Plan that the Balkan country proposed to offset the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, a plan that the head of the European Commission described as “one of the most ambitious” that has been received.
According to the plan, Sofia should receive by 2026 some 6.3 billion euros (6.8 billion dollars), 10% of its GDP, in exchange, among other proposals, for reducing CO2 emissions by 40% and increasing the use of green technologies.
Von der Leyen highlighted that the gas interconnections Bulgaria builds with Romania and Greece will help reduce dependence on Russian hydrocarbons.
The head of the Commission thanked the Bulgarian people for their generosity in the reception and helped some 130,000 Ukrainians who have fled the war and half of whom remain in Bulgaria.
“Not knowing when this conflict will end, it is very important to mobilize all efforts to help Ukrainians who left their country and internally displaced persons,” von der Leyen said, stressing that European funds are much more flexible and accessible to help countries care for refugees.
Brussels has given the green light to Bulgaria’s European Union-funded recovery and sustainability plan, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a visit to Sofia on Thursday.
The Balkan country is among the last EU members to get formal approval for its plan under the bloc’s €800 billion post-pandemic rescue fund, due to months of political turmoil and several inconclusive elections.
Von der Leyen said Thursday's approval marks “an important milestone towards the disbursement ... of 6.3 billion euros (US$6.9 billion) over the next years."
Von der Leyen called Bulgaria's plan “outstanding” as almost 60% of its total resources support green transition, and it is aimed at diversifying energy supplies so that Bulgaria will cease to be dependent on Russian coal, gas and oil, and diversify towards other suppliers.
She also outlined the plan’s goals in digital transition, healthcare, and the judiciary as a step to intensify the fight against corruption.
The Commission’s positive assessment clears the way for the Council of the EU to approve the funding within the next four weeks.
