If we want a strong, autonomous and visible EU, then we must be able to respond ambitiously to the challenges ahead

Namely, today's informal meeting of the European Council in Nicosia on the new European budget was an opportunity for all members of the European Council to once again highlight their national positions, he explained.

He added that the new pillar, which is intended for competitiveness, must be open to everyone equally.

As for the third pillar, global Europe, the Prime Minister advocated for adequate funds for enlargement policy, but also for the Mediterranean.

Asked about the alleged opposition of the Netherlands and Germany to such a large budget, the Prime Minister said that these countries have traditional positions.

New challenges require greater allocations for defense and energy

He explained that there is a very simple formula - either we will remain at the current levels and jointly repay the loan from the Next Generation Instrument, or we will create the conditions for the budget to include funds for financing new challenges and priorities.

New challenges, he added, imply more allocations for defense and energy, as well as combating illegal migration.

"If we want to have a strong, autonomous, visible European Union that has weight in the international community, then this budget must be able to respond ambitiously to the challenges ahead of us," said Prime Minister Plenković.

He recalled the traditional division between net users and net contributors, emphasizing that 80 percent of the budget finances the ten largest and strongest economies in Europe.

However, work will be done to bring the positions closer together and there is still plenty of time to reach an agreement.

At an informal lunch, he reported, they heard very interesting analyses from the leaders of Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon about the current circumstances in the region, and many of them, he added, are trying to contribute to a sustainable peace process.

Asked how he views the announcements from the US that they could expel Spain from NATO, the Prime Minister said that this is not realistic.

"They are and will remain a member of NATO. They can only leave on their own, and I don't think they want to do that," he added.