The European Parliament (EP) has filed a lawsuit with the European Court of Justice against the Council of the EU over its exclusion from the approval process for the "Security for Europe" (SAFE) defense program. This was reported by Euractiv, informs UNN.
Details
The EP press service told the publication that in an attempt to develop Europe's defense industry and encourage EU states to rearm, the European Commission introduced an emergency procedure bypassing the EP.
The €150 billion SAFE defense loan program was proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in March to start spending as quickly as possible. In May, EU ministers gave final approval without consulting the European Parliament
It is indicated that eighteen EU countries have currently officially expressed interest in receiving loans totaling at least 127 billion euros. At the same time, to avoid EP approval, von der Leyen allegedly used Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, which is usually intended for emergencies such as the Covid-19 pandemic, which accelerates the legislative process, significantly reducing the time for discussions in the EP.
The use of Article 122 for SAFE as a legal basis, in the Parliament's opinion, was procedurally incorrect and simply unnecessary. This undermines democratic legitimacy in the eyes of the public, and there is no parliament in the world that would accept this
It is noted that in a letter to von der Leyen, EP President Roberta Metsola warned that the European Commission could be sued. In turn, von der Leyen rejected the complaint, arguing that the use of the emergency clause is "fully justified" because SAFE is an "exceptional and temporary response to an urgent and existential challenge."
Recall
In June, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for the use of 150 billion euros from the SAFE program to help Ukraine's defense. In this context, the politician emphasized that member states can also take SAFE loans and invest in Ukrainian defense.