European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen introduced Monday her re-election bid, promising to guard the unity of the bloc towards division.
The 65-year-old German former minister’s candidacy comes at a time when the bloc is going through robust headwinds from the far-right, Russia’s battle towards Ukraine remains to be raging, and with the specter of Donald Trump returning to the White House rattling allies.
“We must defend against divisions from within and from outside. I am sure that we have the strength to do so, and that is the task that I have set for myself,” von der Leyen mentioned in Berlin, as she confirmed her candidacy following a gathering along with her CDU social gathering.
At the helm since 2019, von der Leyen has led the bloc’s govt physique because the EU traversed a rare interval of disruptions – from Brexit to the coronavirus pandemic to Russia’s invasion of its pro-EU neighbor.
Hendrik Wuest, a key determine in von der Leyen’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) social gathering in Germany, mentioned 5 extra years for her could be a much-needed fixed at a time of uncertainties.
“A second term would be a sign of stability, that is all the more needed at a time when our European values are being attacked from all sides,” he informed news website Politico.
Following Monday’s nomination by the CDU, the broader alliance of conservatives throughout the bloc – the European People’s Party group to which the CDU belongs – is predicted to call her as its lead candidate for the publish when it meets in Bucharest on March 6-7, EPP chief Manfred Weber has mentioned.
Von der Leyen, a protege of former German chancellor Angela Merkel who has served as minister in all 4 of her cupboards, is the primary girl to guide the fee.
A second von der Leyen fee would probably discover itself with a modified political panorama.
Voter surveys counsel extreme-right, anti-immigrant events throughout Europe will seize extra seats in European Parliament elections on June 6-9, pushing the legislature to the appropriate.
That may gradual progress towards the European Union inexperienced transition that von der Leyen had made a cornerstone of her first time period. It may additionally develop the cohort of European lawmakers sympathetic to Trump ought to he regain the White House.
Firm on Ukraine help
EU lawmaker Daniel Caspary of the CDU mentioned he anticipated her priorities to shift, with extra concessions to Europe’s farmers, although her assist for Ukraine and for sanctions towards Russia have been prone to stay.
Underlining the essential significance of standing firmly behind Kyiv, von der Leyen informed the Munich Security Conference over the weekend that it was “way more than a query of Russia-Ukraine.
“It’s a question of whether democracies globally prevail, and are we able to defend and protect our values. And the answer has to be yes,” she careworn.
Alluding to a potential return by Trump, who has rattled NATO allies by threatening to desert those that fail to satisfy their protection spending commitments, von der Leyen additionally voiced the significance of constructing a “strong Europe.”
The bloc has to spice up its protection assets – bettering spending on protection manufacturing and guaranteeing that the manufacturing is finished in Europe in order that billions in taxpayers’ funds are channeled to firms which are creating jobs on the continent, she mentioned.
Von der Leyen additionally outlined plans to “install a commissioner for defense” if she gained a brand new time period.
“And where he or she is coming from – this is open but of course, I think it’s very important for the central and eastern European countries to have good portfolios and this is a good portfolio,” she mentioned.
Source: www.dailysabah.com