EXCLUSIVE Weber (EPP) on the PSD’s insistence to renegotiate the NRRP: „Now is not the time to renegotiate. Now is the time for implementation” / Message to Social Democrats: „Don’t escape from the promises Romania made”

The President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, told G4Media.ro, regarding the PSD’s insistence on renegotiating the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) with the European Union (EU), that now is „not the time to renegotiate”, but rather now is „the time for implementation”.

The leader of the largest political group in the European Parliament expressed his hope that the whole governing coalition is ready to implement the reforms set out in the NRRP and told the Social Democrats that they will not ” escape” the „promises Romania has made”.

„The European Union has shown a great effort, it gave a great signal of solidarity during the coronavirus crisis. We managed to put together a huge investment package. Imagine €750 billion. A lot of money, and Romania’s share is EUR 30 billion. So a lot of money is on the table and that is part of the message of solidarity in Europe. Together we have overcome the coronavirus crisis and now the war.

There is a message behind it and, on the other hand, I think the rest of Europe is asking everyone to show credibility. Solidarity is about credibility and also about responsibility. That is why I believe that now is not the time to renegotiate any kind of plan. Now is the time to implement, to make the necessary reforms at the national level as well, and there I see that the Prime Minister is ready to do that, the President is ready to do that.

I hope that all the governing parties are also ready to do that. So ‘don’t escape’, I would say to the socialists, ‘don’t escape from the promises Romania has made, please fulfill the future-oriented reforms for the country’,” Weber told G4Media.ro.

Asked whether he knew of other cases where EU states had asked for the renegotiation of the NRRP, Manfred Weber said „this is not the case”.

„Well, as far as I know, no, this is not the case. There is nothing formal on the table, it is a domestic debate that is going on here in Romania. Given that we are talking about a really impressive approach of solidarity at the European level, a lot of money, which will help Romania to modernize, to move towards a digital world, towards a more carbon-neutral world, this money is there and I think many Romanians will appreciate it if the management and implementation will now continue and I count on the Prime Minister and all the governing parties joining forces,” the EPP leader explained.

Edited for English