BRUSSELS, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU), adopted Wednesday a budget proposal for its external instruments from 2014 to 2020, in which China and another 18 middle-income countries will no longer be among the recipients of the Development Cooperation Instrument.
Under the commission's new principle of "differentiation," 19 middle-income countries whose Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is larger than one percent of global GDP will no longer receive bilateral grant aid but instead benefit from new forms of partnership.
These 19 countries are Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Kazakhstan, India, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Maldives, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Thailand, Uruguay and Venezuela.
They will continue to receive funds through thematic and regional programs, and this will be complemented by different innovative cooperation modalities such as the blending of grants and loans, the commission said.
It said emerging economies such as China, Brazil and India, in particular, are currently regarded more as EU partners for addressing global challenges.
The European Commission said the EU will seek to channel its resources where they are most needed and where they will have the highest impact to further reinforce the EU's role on the global stage and promote its interests and values.
The external instrument budget, totalling 96.2 billion euros (128.9 billion U.S. dollars), will be used for nine categories of instruments, including the European Development Fund, which will be endowed with 34.3 billion euros (46 billion dollars), the Development Cooperation Instrument with 23.3 billion euros (31.2 billion dollars), the European Neighborhood Instrument with 18.2 billion euros (24.4 billion dollars), the Pre-accession Instrument with 14.1 billion euros (18.9 billion dollars), the Instrument for Stability with 2.8 billion euros (3.8 billion dollars), the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights with 1.6 billion euros (2.1 billion dollars) and the Partnership Instrument with 1.1 billion euros (1.5 billion dollars).
Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said the EU's security and prosperity depend on "what happens beyond our borders, not least in our own neighborhood."
European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs said that the EU will keep its commitment to the UN Millennium Development Goals, and will allocate 0.7 percent of its Gross National Income (GNI) to aid by 2015.
He acknowledged that ensuring more inclusive and sustainable growth in the world is also in the EU's interest.
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