Radio România Internațional

Tag: European Parliament political groups

  • Ursula von der Leyen, re-elected

    Ursula von der Leyen, re-elected

    The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has been confirmed at the helm of the European Commission for the next 5 years, after she was voted, on Thursday’s first session of the new European Parliament since the June election. The support for von der Leyen was even greater compared to her first term, although right-wing and left-wing opposition forces have consolidated their presence in the community bloc. Her candidacy was dealt a major blow, analysts say, after an EU Court of Justice ruled, a day before the election, that Ursula von der Leyen had not been transparent enough with the public about pandemic contracts for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccines. However, everything turned out well at the end of intense negotiations that took place until the very morning of the voting day, according to some political sources. Ursula von der Leyen received 401 votes although she needed half plus one of the total of 720. In her speech in Parliament, Ursula von der Leyen pleaded for a strong Europe and promised to make industry and defense her priorities. The president of the European Commission reconfirmed the continuation of support for Ukraine in all forms and condemned the actions of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán that could have weakened the Union, after his recent visit to Moscow, in the context in which Hungary holds the EU Council presidency.

     

     

     

    According to the EPP, Ursula von der Leyen’s party of origin, the pro-European, pro-Ukraine and pro-rule of law majority in the European Parliament reflects the reality of European society. Ursula von der Leyen’s agenda targets both right-wing and left-wing policies, managing to respond to most of the citizens’ requests. The Social Democrats, the second largest group in Parliament, supported von der Leyen after her program included social and agricultural policies. Renew, the third-largest group in the coalition, gave von the Leyen less votes than before. Romanian MEPs however voted to support Ursula von der Leyen’s second term in office. Although they are not part of the coalition, part of the Greens voted in favor of Ursula von der Leyen. Just in like with the Social-Democrats, the Greens were promised the Commission would focus on environmental policies and the plan for affordable housing. The vote and hearings on EU Commissioners are scheduled to follow. Governments of EU Members will each have to present two candidates (one woman and one man) for the positions of European commissioners, von der Leyen said. The final vote on the structure of the Commission could be slated for September.

     

     

     

    The only incident of first day was the aggressive intervention of Romanian MEP Diana Şoşoacă, who was twice expelled from the hall for interrupting the session. The incident was criticized by all parliamentary groups, including the radical or extremist ones, and condemned by the Romanian MEPs because it mars the image of Romania at international level. Listed as a pro-Russian politician and leader of the populist SOS Romania party, the former Senator returned to her antics in the Romanian Parliament. In Brussels, however, failure to observe the rules is subject to immediate sanctions. (VP)

  • Who are the new leaders of European institutions?

    Who are the new leaders of European institutions?

    Meeting for the second time after the European Parliament election at the start of June, EU leaders decided who will occupy the key positions in EU institutions. Ursula von der Leyen was nominated for the presidency of the Commission, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas for the position of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa will take over the presidency of the European Council. The three positions are thus divided between the three political groups that form the majority in the European Parliament – the European People’s Party, Renew and the Social-Democrats. As head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas will also have to tackle the issue of Union security.

     

     

    “This is enormous responsibility in this time of geopolitical tensions. There’s war in Europe, there’s also growing instability globally that are also the main challenges of European foreign policy”.

     

     

    The appointments were agreed on the sidelines of a negotiation meeting held within in a limited framework, attended by six European leaders from the three pro-European political groups, which favor the deepening of European integration and the consolidation of the EU’s prerogatives, something that irritated the head of the Italian government, Giorgia Meloni, who was left out of these talks. Negotiating the positions were German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Polish and Greek Prime Ministers Donald Tusk and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Interim Prime Minister Mark Rutte. Meloni, whose party is part of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the European Parliament, said the six negotiators had formed an oligarchy to decide upon the next positions without taking into account will of citizens who voted in the European Parliament election of June 6-9. The election confirmed an increase in voters’ choices for Eurosceptic conservative parties, without, however, overturning the majority formed by the EPP, S&D and Renew. Leaders of EU member states also adopted the strategic agenda of the Union for the next five years, with economic competitiveness, the defense of democratic values, internal reforms for the expansion of the Union and security among the top priorities. The agenda also stipulates budget allocations for defense spending. According to Ursula von der Leyen, the EU needs an additional 500 bln EUR for defense in the next 10 years

     

     

    Ukraine remains another priority, both in terms of EU accession and financial and military assistance. During talks regarding the EU Strategic Agenda, Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, said the document must reflect joint commitments to continue efforts towards a stronger, more resilient and more influential EU at global level. (VP)