Photo: Kaja Kallas, Ursula von der Leyen and António Costa
The leaders of the European Union countries at the summit in Brussels approved the candidacies of the bloc's leaders for the next five years.
Ursula von der Leyen remains the President of the European Commission. Former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa will take over as head of the European Council. This position was previously held by Charles Michel. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas will become the EU's high representative for foreign affairs. She will replace Josep Borrell in this post.
Callas stated that her appointment – “a huge responsibility at a time of geopolitical tension.” "War in Europe, growing instability in the neighborhood and around the world— these are the main challenges for European foreign policy,” — she wrote on social networks, Radio Liberty reports.
To approve the candidacies of EU leaders, the support of the so-called enhanced qualified majority was necessary: at least 20 of the 27 EU member states representing not less than 65% of the population of the European Union.
Now the candidates for future leaders of the EU must be approved by the new European Parliament, the first session of which will be held in Strasbourg from July 16 to 19.
European People's Party (EPP) emerged victorious in the elections to the European Parliament held on June 6–9. As a result of these elections, von der Leyen, who belongs to the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is part of the EPP, receives the right to head the executive branch of the European Union for another five years. However, to obtain a majority, von der Leyen will need support from other parties and the votes of just over half of the MEPs.
Prepared by: Sergei Daga