The reporter learned on September 29, local time, that the leaders of the six countries of the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Austria sent an ultimatum to the European Union on the budget issue, demanding spending cuts of hundreds of billions of euros; otherwise, they will refuse to support the upcoming seven-year budget. The six leaders said in a letter to the European Union that the budget “must be fundamentally reformed. We need to make choices and focus more on defense and innovative businesses.” An EU diplomat also stated that “no agreement will be reached this year unless the budget is cut by hundreds of billions of dollars.”

The reporter learned on September 29, local time, that the leaders of the six countries of the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Austria sent an ultimatum to the European Union on the budget issue, demanding spending cuts of hundreds of billions of euros; otherwise, they will refuse to support the upcoming seven-year budget. The six leaders said in a letter to the European Union that the budget “must be fundamentally reformed. We need to make choices and focus more on defense and innovative businesses.” An EU diplomat also stated that “no agreement will be reached this year unless the budget is cut by hundreds of billions of dollars.”