In a joint statement, the leaders of the Visegrád group, comprising Poland, Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia, as well as Croatia, slapped down the bloc, demanding the Commission wind its neck in on Poland’s domestic reform.
Giving their take on the future of the EU, the five leaders said: “EU institutions should treat all member states equally and act strictly within the remits of their respective Treaty-based competences.
“The right of Member States to carry out domestic reforms within their competences should be respected.”
And they also said that national leaders should have more decision-making power at the level of the European Council.
They said: “The decisions made by the Heads of State and Government must not be disregarded at the lower levels of the decision-making process.”
The Visegrád leaders demanded “unanimity-based decisions” on “matters of strategic national interest”.
They want any EU member state to be able to demand a unanimous vote on issues at the European Council, to ensure a single-speed Europe that works for everyone.
It comes after the EU threatened to reduce funding to Poland after its ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) introduced reforms that are seen to threaten the judiciary.
Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Hungary’s Viktor Orban also both face Article 7 sanctions after the “nuclear option” was triggered against them, meaning they could lose their voting rights in Brussels.
Mr Orban is accused of threatening independent charities, while both states have refused to take in migrants in accordance with EU-wide quotas.
Migrants were also a hot topic at the Visegrád summit, which also included Czech’s Andrej Babis and Slovakia’s Andrej Kiska.
The four leaders said: “We must restore the proper functioning of Schengen, as well as regaining full control over the external borders.”
They highlighted the “still unresolved challenges” of the migration crisis and demanded a solution that would “prevent the migratory pressure on Europe” by working with countries of origin and transit to stop foreign nationals from arriving on EU soil in the first place.
It was the latest episode in a long saga of clashes between the EU and its increasingly irritable central and eastern European member states.
In early January Poland and Hungary demanded the EU start to respect their views on the same level as western European states, as they said migration policy needed to change.
While today PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski refused to slow the pace of his party’s justice reforms despite the EU’s threats they would have to stop altogether.