- EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the comments in her annual State of the Union address.
- The speech focused on migration and energy policy.
- Von der Leyen wants to reduce the EU’s dependence on countries like China in the production of electric cars and further promote wind power in Europe.
- According to the President of the EU Commission, war refugees from Ukraine should be able to stay in the EU without any problems at least until 2025.
One focus of EU Commission President von der Leyen’s speech was energy policy. China’s state support for its electric car manufacturers has been causing problems for European companies for a long time. Von der Leyen is now announcing steps. Measures are currently being taken in several economic sectors to reduce the EU’s dependence on countries such as China and to protect domestic companies.
The EU Commission also wants to further promote wind power in Europe and speed up the approval process. The Brussels authority will present a package for wind power in Europe, working closely with industry and member states, said von der Leyen.
We will improve auction systems across the EU. We will focus on skills, access to finance and resilient supply chains.
The wind industry is currently facing a unique combination of challenges. «We will improve auction systems across the EU. “We will focus on skills, access to finance and stable supply chains,” said von der Leyen. The future of the clean tech industry must lie in Europe, said the Commission President. This is about more than one sector – “from wind power to steel, from batteries to electric vehicles”.
War refugees in the EU
The Commission will propose to extend the temporary protection scheme for Ukrainians in the EU, von der Leyen announced.
The four million people who have found refuge in the EU since the start of the war are still as welcome today as they were in those fateful first weeks. “Our support for Ukraine will last,” said the top German politician.
No information about your own future
In her speech, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen did not say whether she would seek another term in office after the European elections next June.
Von der Leyen only made general comments about the upcoming elections. It will be the moment to decide what future and what Europe voters want.
In order to be able to remain at the head of the EU Commission for another five years, the CDU politician von der Leyen would have to be nominated as the top candidate of the European EVP party family for the European elections, as things currently stand. In addition to the German CDU and CSU, this includes the Austrian ÖVP, the Italian Forza Italia and Spain’s conservative People’s Party PP.