(ANSA) - Brussels, February 19 - Premier Matteo Renzi warned Eastern European EU states at the summit in Brussels overnight that they risked losing EU funding if they fail to do their bit to address the asylum-seeker crisis. "Solidarity cannot just be about taking," Renzi said, according to ANSA sources. "Now the phase of planning of 2020 funds is starting.
Either you show solidarity in taking and giving or we net contributor countries will stop showing solidarity too". The comments were praised by fellow EU founder members France and Germany, the sources said.
Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacc was quoted by the Tanjug agency on Friday as saying Renzi was attempting "political blackmail" after he threatened cuts in EU funds to States that fail to be cooperative with the relocation of migrants.