EU summit: leaders warns of tough budget talks

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said
national positions were "still quite apart"
[PHOTO: Armin Linnartz CC BY-SA 3.0]

Brussels:EU leaders gathering for a two-day summit in Brussels are warning of tough talks on a new seven-year budget for the 27-member bloc.

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said there would be no agreement at the summit without further spending cuts.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said national positions were "still quite apart."

The start of the summit on February 7 was delayed for several hours to allow for further bilateral talks to seek compromise.

Britain, Germany, and other northern states insist on lower EU spending to reflect national spending cuts.

Southern and eastern states want funding to continue that supports poorer member states.

The 1.02 trillion-euro ($1.35 trillion) budget originally proposed by the European Commission has already been cut back to 943 billion euros ($1.25 billion).