EU fills key leadership positions.

Current President of the European Council Charles Michel announced that European Union (EU) leaders signed an agreement on June 27 to nominate Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as President of the European Commission.

Also as part of the agreement reached at the EU summit in Brussels, former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa was chosen as President of the European Council and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas was nominated to serve as High Representative for Security and Foreign Policy, replacing Josep Borrell.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks in Brussels, Belgium.

In a social media post, Prime Minister Kallas stated that EU leaders had entrusted her with “enormous responsibility at a time of geopolitical tension.” The Estonian leader wrote: “War in Europe, increasing instability in our neighborhood and globally are the main challenges to European foreign policy.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Costa affirmed his commitment to promoting unity among the 27 EU member states. In his new role, the former Portuguese Prime Minister – a center-left figure – will have to mend the rifts between heads of state and government in a Europe increasingly divided by the rise of the far right. Mr. Costa expressed his desire to work closely with Ms. von der Leyen and Ms. Kallas “in the spirit of genuine cooperation between European institutions.”

Both von der Leyen and Kallas will need to be approved by the European Parliament in a secret ballot, while Costa's nomination only requires the approval of EU leaders. The former Portuguese Prime Minister will assume his new position on December 1, 2024.

The list of new leaders reflects the bloc's continuity, with moderate pro-EU factions holding top positions, despite the rise of the far right in the European Parliament elections earlier in June.

Although all three candidates received widespread support from European leaders, diplomatic sources revealed that Italy's right-wing Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, abstained from voting on von der Leyen's nomination and voted against Kallas's nomination.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/eu-kien-toan-cac-vi-tri-lanh-dao-chu-chot-post385970.html