LOC19:00
16:00 GMT
BRUSSELS, Feb 14 (KUNA) -- European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker strongly denied Wednesday that he is in favor of creating a "European super state."
"Some in the British political society are against the truth, pretending that I am stupid, stubborn that I am in favor of a European super state. I am strictly against a European super state. We are not the USA, we are the EU," Juncker told a press conference.
Noting that the EU is a Union of 28 countries, he said, adding that the EU cannot be built against the European nations; therefore, "this is total nonsense."
He was responding to a question on comments made by UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson that the EU is pursuing to create a super state and that is why the British people voted to leave the EU.
Ahead of the informal EU Leaders' meeting in Brussels on 23 February, Juncker presented a paper on steps that could make the EU work more efficient, and improve the connection between the leaders of the EU institutions and the citizens of Europe.
The paper proposes that a single person should hold the two offices of President of the European Council and President of the European Commission arguing that this could make the structure of the Union more efficient.
It also proposes to cut the number of the 28 EU Commissioners currently, one from each member-state.
He urged the EU leaders before the next European Commission is appointed in 2019, to decide whether to maintain the principle of one Commissioner from each Member State, or to make the Commission smaller. A smaller executive would in theory be more efficient.
Answering a question on Turkey, he gave a brief reply that "I am strictly against behavior of Turkey." (end)
nk.ma