French plot fails to force Britain out of EU research projects
The commission experienced argued that it should really be limited to EU members because of to its “global strategic importance”.
France, whose commissioner Thierry Breton spearheaded the plan, was in favour of the transfer.
Nevertheless, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Poland, the Netherlands and the Baltic states were against the commission proposal. Those people international locations collectively would easily block any ban if it was set to a vote.
“You just can’t just set the Uk in the exact box as Iran or China,” an EU diplomat said.
The Uk negotiated affiliate membership of the Horizon programme, which associates organizations and universities, in previous year’s Brexit talks.
Britain is one particular of more than a dozen fee-shelling out non-EU international locations that plan to acquire component in the 7-yr funding programme, which difficulties grants.
Brussels is pursuing a “strategic autonomy” plan, made to bolster the bloc’s means to protect alone from level of competition from the US and China.
The news of the proposed ban appalled European universities when it broke at the close of March. “The most current proposal by the European Commission to exclude extensive-standing and trustful lover international locations … is not in the fascination of Europe’s analysis community nor the wider society,” the Eurotech Universities Alliance said at the time.
