The European Union’s new staff of executives, led by European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen, took workplace on Sunday (December 1) because the 27-country bloc faces a brand new geopolitical actuality.
Safety and defence within the face of Russian aggression on the bloc’s japanese flank, tensions within the Center East, sluggish competitiveness, financial rivalry from China, commerce worries forward of Donald Trump’s return to the White Home and addressing unlawful immigration – the brand new Fee has its work reduce out for it.
Final week, the European Parliament gave its last approval for the brand new Fee to begin its five-year mandate, with 370 votes in favour, 282 towards and 36 abstentions. “Now we have no time to waste. And we have to be as formidable because the threats are critical,” von der Leyen instructed EU lawmakers in Strasbourg forward of the vote.
Kaja Kallas, former Prime Minister of Estonia, took over because the bloc’s new Excessive Consultant for International Affairs and Safety Coverage, changing former EU prime diplomat Josep Borrell. Together with the brand new staff of Commissioners, former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa took workplace as the brand new President of the European Council, changing former president Charles Michel.
The European Fee’s management staff consists of 27 members, one for every EU member state headed by von der Leyen. The brand new EU govt has been in preparation for the reason that 27-nation bloc held European elections in June.
Sturdy indicators for Europe – and for Ukraine
On their first day in workplace, Costa and Kallas – joined by Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos – travelled to Kyiv sending a robust message that the EU will proceed to assist Ukraine within the face of Russian aggression and on its path to EU membership. “The scenario in Ukraine may be very, very grave,” EU overseas coverage chief Kallas mentioned.
In response to Costa, the assist included humanitarian, monetary, navy and diplomatic assist.
On Ukraine’s EU accession course of, Kos, who was the Slovenian ambassador to Germany and Switzerland, mentioned: “My promise is that I’ll do all the things in my energy to convey you to the ultimate line of the negotiation course of.”
The European Union formally opened accession negotiations with Ukraine in June. On Sunday, Costa mentioned he would work along with Kyiv to open at the least two areas of accession negotiations within the first half of 2025.
Because of Russia’s aggression, the EU modified its place relating to the coverage of enlargement in the direction of its japanese neighbours when it granted candidate standing to Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. This was unthinkable earlier than the warfare, because the EU has historically been cautious about enlargement – however Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has given the prospect of increasing the bloc a brand new impetus.
Nonetheless, Costa mentioned that he was towards “artificially set deadlines” within the accession course of, which is a departure from the place of Charles Michel, who mentioned that the EU and candidate nations must be prepared for enlargement by 2030.
A lift for defence spending
Outlining the priorities of her new Fee final week, EU chief von der Leyen burdened the significance of accelerating protection spending and the necessity to keep the unity of the EU.
Stepping up Europe’s defences has been a precedence since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Nonetheless, based on the Fee, European defence spending has been too little and too disjointed in current many years to maintain up with Russia and China.
“Our defence spending should improve. We’d like a single marketplace for defence. We have to strengthen the defence industrial base,” she mentioned.
Europe collectively has spent round 125 billion {Dollars} (119 billion Euro) on supporting Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion. America alone have coughed up over 90 billion {Dollars} (85 billion Euro), based on a tracker from the Kiel Institute, a German impartial, non-profit financial analysis institute and suppose tank.
Von der Leyen has beforehand mentioned the bloc wants to speculate 500 billion Euro (526 billion Greenback) over the subsequent decade to maintain up with Russia and China. This has turn into extra pressing since Donald Trump was re-elected as US president, amid fears he may cut back the US’ dedication to European safety and assist for Ukraine.
For the primary time, the EU can have a defence commissioner – Lithuania’s Andrius Kubilius – who together with new overseas coverage chief Kallas has been charged with setting out a roadmap for European defence within the first 100 days of the brand new Fee.
What else to anticipate from the brand new Fee’s first 100 days
Fee President von der Leyen mentioned that one other prime focus of her new staff must be revamping EU financial competitiveness, avoiding what former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has described because the “gradual agony” of decline.
The bloc struggles to maintain up with the US and faces mounting competitors from China amid an array of challenges together with low productiveness, gradual progress, excessive vitality prices and weak investments.
France’s Stéphane Séjourné, in control of the EU’s industrial technique, should work with Spain’s Teresa Ribera, the brand new competitors and inexperienced transition chief, to reconcile financial progress with local weather ambitions with out threatening the competitiveness of European corporations.
A “competitiveness compass” framing the Fee’s technique will likely be its first main initiative, von der Leyen mentioned final week. The three foremost pillars of this compass could be to spice up innovation, assist the decarbonisation of the financial system and diversify provide of uncooked supplies.
She additionally intends to current the beforehand introduced Clear Industrial Deal inside the first 100 days in workplace. The Deal is geared toward unlocking funding, creating main markets for clear applied sciences and creating the situations for European corporations to develop and compete with rivals in China or the US.
To spice up innovation, Bulgaria’s Ekaterina Zaharieva in her position as Commissioner for Startups, Analysis and Innovation is tasked with strengthening the European Analysis Space and pledged to suggest a brand new European Innovation Act. She additionally intends to push EU member states to fulfill the three-percent spending goal on analysis and innovation. And she or he is tasked with growing a complete technique for start-ups.
Von der Leyen additionally mentioned that she desires to deal with the disaster within the automotive business brought on by the transition to low-carbon applied sciences, the deterioration of provide chains, elevated competitors from Asia and a lower in demand for electrical fashions.
On vitality safety and costs in addition to the housing disaster, Denmark’s Dan Jørgensen has been tasked with bringing down vitality costs and making the EU impartial of Russian fuel in his position as Commissioner for Housing and Vitality.
Because the bloc seems to extend its manufacturing of renewable vitality, the previous Danish minister mentioned: “There isn’t a doubt that the inexperienced transition is beneath stress in lots of EU nations. However I’m very optimistic that we within the European Fee can truly proceed to be fairly formidable.”
Von der Leyen additionally reiterated her agency method to migration. Irregular border crossings into the European Union are down 43 p.c this yr after an virtually ten-year peak in 2023 – but migration is excessive on the political agenda following far-right features in a number of nations.
In October, EU leaders known as for pressing new laws to extend and pace up returns and for the Fee to discover “new methods” to counter irregular migration. Von der Leyen has promised to swiftly put a proposal on the desk, simply months after the bloc adopted a long-negotiated reform of its asylum insurance policies.
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