EU budget talks stall in Brussels as leaders fail to agree

EU leaders failed to reach an agreement on the bloc's next seven-year budget at the Brussels summit on Thursday, casting doubt on the December 2026 deadline for concluding negotiations and potentially delaying funding for European programs. The Irish presidency's compromise proposal, which included a €141 billion budget cut, was rejected as it failed to satisfy member states' differing demands. European Council President Antonio Costa will now draft a new proposal, with an emergency summit scheduled for November 26, and is considering new EU-level taxes on cryptocurrencies, online gambling, and tech firms, alongside a Greek proposal to direct future 6G spectrum auction revenues to the EU budget. Negotiations are complicated by divisions between the "frugal" countries led by Germany, which seek spending cuts, and the "Friends of Cohesion" group of 17 southern and eastern European nations, which want to preserve traditional funding programs. Elections in several member states in 2027, including France, Italy, Poland, and Greece, may further delay an agreement, with some officials fearing talks could extend into autumn 2027.