by Andreas Rinke and Riham Alkousaa
BERLIN (Reuters) – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen won the support of her German CDU party on Monday, putting her in a good position for a second term as head of the European Union’s executive body ( EU).
Germany’s Christian Democrats have thrown their support behind Ursula von der Leyen to become their candidate for Commission presidency at a meeting of party leaders in Berlin, confirming that the current post holder aims for a second term in Brussels.
The former German Minister of Defense, who had not yet formalized her candidacy, should thus become the candidate of the European People’s Party (EPP), which brings together the center-right parties of the continent, during a congress in Bucharest in March.
Read also…
“I am making a very considered decision. I wish to run for a second term and I am very grateful to the CDU for having nominated me today as their head of list for the EPP,” declared Ursula von der Leyen, during a press conference.
The first woman to hold this position, Ursula von der Leyen, 65, faced the COVID-19 pandemic, the formal withdrawal of the United Kingdom following Brexit and the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
A loyal supporter of Ukraine, it played a major role in sanctions imposed on Russia, providing tens of billions of euros in aid to Kyiv and engaging in Ukraine’s EU membership.
His renewal would come as Europe seeks to strengthen its security, with Russia waging a war on its borders and the hypothesis of a return of Donald Trump to the White House.
The leaders of the 27 member states must nominate the next president of the Commission after the European elections, scheduled for June 6-9.
Traditionally, the future elected official is chosen from the party that came first in the elections. According to polls, the EPP enjoys a large lead and the current Commission President enjoys strong support from EU leaders.
Last month, the leader of Germany’s conservatives in the European parliament, Daniel Caspary, made it clear that he expected Ursula von der Leyen to be nominated by the EPP.
Despite the progress of far-right populist parties, the EPP, the oldest group in the European Parliament, enjoys a large lead in opinion polls.
Its main challenge lies in its ability to obtain a majority in the European Parliament in the face of far-right parties skeptical of the ecological policy pursued by the European Commission.
Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a “green deal” for Europe aimed at achieving carbon neutrality in 2050 which has crystallized criticism.
His own camp, the EPP, tried without much success to remove certain environmental proposals while the Commission backpedaled on certain measures in the face of anger from farmers in several countries of the European bloc.
(Reporting by Andreas Rinke and Riham Alkousaa, Andrew Gray, Kate Abnett and Philip Blenkinsop; French version Zhifan Liu, editing by Blandine Hénault)
©2024 Thomson Reuters, all rights reserved. Reuters content is the intellectual property of Thomson Reuters or its third party content providers. Any copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. “Reuters” and the Reuters Logo are trademarks of Thomson Reuters and its affiliated companies.