EUParliament Budget Committee Head Arthuis to EF: +1 Billion € more to Turkey by EU, No States (2019

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- Experienced former Minister, Head of Political Party, and nowadays President of EU Parliament's powerful Budget Committee, Jean Arthuis, Replying to "Eurofora"'s Questions on the New EU Annual Budget for 2019, which is due to be Debated Tomorrow, Tuesday, and Voted on Wednesday, by EU Parliament's Plenary Session in Strasbourg, expressed, in general, his Satisfaction, about a notable Augmentation of EU Funds for some Popular EU Programs (See Infra), but Acknowledged, also, the Fact that he was Not Glad for an UnExpected "Push" by some inside EU Council, to Impose to this EU Budget to pay 2 Billions €, out of a Total of 3 Billions €, to Turkey's Controversial Blackmail Deal in order to Help Stop a     2015/2016 Mass Asylum Seekers/Irregular Migrants sudden "Tsunami" Massive Influx, instead of "Only" 1 Billion € Back on 2017/2018, the Rest coming from EU Member States' National Budgets.

An overall Inter-Institutional Agreement on the 2019 EU Budget, between the European Council and the Parliament, was notoriously Negotiated with EU Council by Italian Socialist MEP Daniele Viotti and Experienced Austrian ChristianDemocrat/EPP MEP, Paul Rübig, and has just Received a "Green Light" in a Positive Vote by EU Parliament's Budget Committee's Members this Monday Evening, with 17 MEPs against 2, and 5 Abstentions.

- President Arthuis, (a Centrist/Liberal  supporter of new French President Macron), told "Eurofora" that he was Glad because EU Parliament succeeded to get for 2019 some Bigger Sums of EU Funds, than what had been Initially proposed by EU Commission and/or EU Council, in such Flagship Popular European Programs, as "Erasmus" (for Young Students), Small/Medium Businesses, and "Horizon" (Scientific/Technological Research), etc., that co-Rapporteur Rübig had also Highlighted as Important Points, even more for this year, Speaking to "Eurofora" Earlier.

Moreover, some Millions €, among those initially earmarked for controversial and unpopular EU Accession candidacy by Turkey, had been "Freezed", also on 2019, for reasons of Human Rights Violations, anew, Arthuis confirmed.(Obviously, however, this could Not Compare with the ..3 Billions € that Turkey received from the EU, in Addition, since a 2015-2016 Blackmail : See Infra)...

Previously, however, Turkey had notoriously exerted a Blackmail on EU Council members, since Back on 2015, in the middle of an UnPrecedented and UnWarned, sudden Influx of +1,5 Million Mass Asylum Seekers/Irregular Migrants tresspassing inside Europe through Turkey, particularly a Sunday in Brussels, when, Moreoever, Deadly Islamist Terrorist Attacks, cowardly Targetting innocent Civilian People, had obliged to even Block Public and Private Transports DownTown... One of the Results was an EU Promise to Pay 3 Billions € to Turkey, in full Grants, each Year, (reportedly Agreed on 2015, and endorsed on March 2016).

This worked Despite the Fact that several EU Countries had, Meanwhile, decided and Succeeded to Close the Western Balkans Route for that Massive Asylum Seekers/Irregular Migrants UnPrecedented "Tsunami", suddenly tresspassing into Europe, through Turkey, (See concrete Facts and Proof from International, UNHCR + IOM Official Data, already Published by "Eurofora" since May 2016, at: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/unpopulareuvisafreefor80millionsturksuseless.html).

At the Beginning, it was mainly the EU Member States who advanced that Money, which did Not come from EU's normal Budget, so that, Last Year (2018), 2 Billions € came from National Budgets, and just 1 Billion € from EU's normal Budget, Arthuis reminded to "Eurofora".

- But, suddenly, this Time, some from EU Council "put it bluntly" to EU Parliament, asking, in a very "Sovereign way", from the normal EU Budget to pay the DOUBLE : i.e. 2 Billions € for Turkey on 2019, (in addition to just 1 Billion € from the States now).

- "We didn't like that", since, moreover, "EU Parliament and EU Counci are Both Equal Parts of EU's Budget Authorities", in principle, "but, since several Collegues (MEPs) didn't want problems nowadays, we decided to accept", President Arthuis told us.

=> However, "Eurofora" raised the Obvious Question, where EU Parliament found all that Money, (+200% !), suddenly asked for Turkey for 2019 (i.e. 2 Billions €, instead of 1, from EU Funds, and no more States' Funds, Comp. Supra) ? Are there any Other Important EU Activities/Programs, which might "Suffer" from such a last-minute Manoeuvre ?

According to some Other EU Parliament's sources, that Supplementary +1 Billion € for 2019 would have been taken from various EU Funds initially scheduled for Chapters 3 = 4 of EU's Annual Budget, both from Internal ane External Activities, (but withOut Specifying yet clearly enough)...

However, in such circumstances, various Concrete Hypothesis could give an Idea of what this might really mean in Practice, f.ex. by Questioning whether any Important EU Program or Activity might, perhaps, have been Affected.

Inter alia, f.ex., at anOther Report, scheduled for Debate and Vote by EU Parliament during this Same Week, MEPs Dream for a Europe with "Autonomous access to SPACE", and even "Independence" in Space High-Tech., as relevant Amendments stress from the Start of active Young Italian MEP Massimiliano Salini's Draft on EU's "Space Agency" and its "Program".

Inter alia, f.ex., "Galileo" and "Copernicus" Programs should not only "Continue", but "they Must also be Improved", in order to "remain at the Forefront in view of New Technology Developments and the Transformations in the digital and information and communications technology domains, meet the New Needs of users", EU Commission and Parliament agreed.

But, even if the "Exploration of Outer Space", and "SST", etc., are evoked by that Report, on the Contrary, the Words "Human Space Flight", "Austronaut and "Planet", etc, seem, Curiously, Absent in that, otherwise interesting Paper, despite the fact that they are, notoriously, Key in order to Boost Space Technologies, while New US President Don Trump's NASA reportedly comes Back to such "Classic" Plans in the foreseable Future, (including, f.ex., Preparations for Moon and/or Mars' Landings, etc), and China ambitiously aims to catch up the soonest...

Could it be due to a Restriction of EU Funds, (naturally related also to the presence, or not, of a Strong Political Will, and Ambitious overall Vision for Europe), at the Same Time that EU Parliament is apparentlly Obliged to seek to make several Economies Sparing EU earmarked Funds also for Turkey's +1 Billion € More per Year, (i.e. 2 Billions € for Turkey during this Year 2019, instead of 1 Before, out of 3 Billions € in Total : Comp. Supra), Contrary to what was reportedly expected ?

Inter alia, also the Experience of a key Previous INTW of President Arthuis, but Also of various Other European Space Programs' related Top Experts, in the recent Past, naturaly Raises such Critical Questions, (Comp., f.ex., also : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/eufundsforturkeyonlyifconditions.html , etc)...

F.ex., among various other relevant Facts, "Eurofora" remembers also that, according to Top Space Experts, Europe would be Glad to have around just ...Half a Billion €, or, elsewhere, 1,2 Billion €, in order to Fund some Ambitious Programs concerning Planets' Exploration, Human Space Flight projects, etc.

Should Europeans be obliged to lose such Strategic Chances, for a 2nd Time, just because of a blunt Turkish Blackmail on 2015/2016 (Comp. Supra) ?