António Costa, the socialist President of the European Council, ended Thursday’s summit in Brussels without agreement on energy policy or the bloc’s long-term budget after fourteen hours of stalled talks.
The gathering had been called to address energy costs and the EU’s seven-year budget plan. Its first session became a three-hour argument over whether to delay ETS2, a carbon-pricing system due to cover heating and road transport from 2028, until 2030.
Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister, led a coalition with the Visegrád Group of Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia and Poland that sought a postponement, citing possible financial pressure on households. Greece was also among the countries backing a timetable review and further delay.
Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries opposed postponing the system. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed anger at Meloni’s position.
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The split put Costa under the fiercest pressure of his presidency, which began on December 1, 2024. Diplomats questioned his neutrality, with some calling him “two-faced”. One diplomat said: “He lost control of the room.”
Diplomats called the negotiations over carbon pricing “absurd chaos”. Costa cancelled the summit’s scheduled press conference and moved further discussions until after dinner.
The talks then continued late into the night and past midnight. Leaders also failed to make progress on energy prices and the next seven-year budget.
The European Council has scheduled an extraordinary summit on the long-term budget for November 26, as member states try to address their continuing disagreements.
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