Brussels, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 17th Sep, 2024) European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will dish out the jobs in her new top team on Tuesday, with EU countries hoping their picks land a juicy post.
Here are some of the key figures set to feature in the line-up for the German’s second five-year term:
– Kaja Kallas: Top diplomat –
The former Estonian prime minister has already been nominated by EU leaders to be the bloc’s next foreign policy chief — putting the fierce Ukraine backer at the helm at a crucial moment.
A hawkish critic of Russia, Kallas, 47, has a personal beef with the Kremlin after her own mother was deported to Siberia by Soviet authorities in the wake of World War II.
More recently, she herself was put on Russia’s wanted list.
Viewing the war on Ukraine as an existential threat to her homeland, Tallinn’s “Iron Lady” is expected to maintain a laser focus on supporting Kyiv.
But with the war in Gaza raging and challenges mounting around the globe, she will have to prove quickly that she is not a one-trick pony.
– Stephane Sejourne: Last-minute sub –
Outgoing French foreign minister Stephane Sejourne was only parachuted in as a late replacement after the first pick from Paris, incumbent internal market commissioner Thierry Breton, quit in a dramatic spat with von der Leyen.
Breton’s departure leaves big shoes to fill for the 39-year-old, but the staunch ally of President Emmanuel Macron already has plenty of experience negotiating the corridors of power in Brussels.
A key part of Macron’s coterie, Sejourne headed the president’s centrist Renew grouping in the European Parliament before becoming France’s top diplomat in January.
As Paris angles for a weighty role in charge of industrial strategy, Sejourne will be viewed as a crucial counterweight by France to German dominance in Brussels.
– Raffaele Fitto: Meloni’s hope –
Italy’s European affairs minister, Fitto, 55, is being pushed by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for a top role in Brussels as she seeks to stamp her weight on the EU.
But speculation that a candidate from her post-fascist Brothers of Italy party could become one of von der Leyen’s key lieutenants has been slammed by centrist and left-wing EU lawmakers.
An experienced minister who knows Brussels well, Fitto once served under Silvio Berlusconi and is widely considered one of the more moderate members of Meloni’s government.
He was elected three times to the European Parliament before joining Meloni’s administration in 2022, charged with managing Italy’s share of the EU’s vast post-Covid recovery plan.
– Teresa Ribera: Green queen –
Spain’s ecological transition minister Ribera is a longtime environmentalist known for her negotiating skills and climate expertise.
The media-savvy 55-year-old is close with Spain’s Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and has been tipped for one of the major portfolios such as economic transformation, environment or competition.
A keen proponent of the EU’s Green Deal, the ambitious plan to make the bloc carbon-neutral by 2050, at home she has promoted the development of hydrogen and banned wolf hunting.
But Ribera’s strong stance has frequently put her at loggerheads with farmers and her opposition to nuclear power upsets EU nations including France.
– Piotr Serafin: Poland’s fixer –
A well-known figure in Brussels, Serafin is a close confidant of Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, having run his office when he was the head of the European Council.
Currently serving as Warsaw’s EU ambassador, the low-key operator is being mooted for a key role as the new budget chief.
If confirmed, that would further confirm Poland’s rising weight inside the EU, and put Warsaw in prime position when it comes to the fierce negotiations over the bloc’s next budget.
– Oliver Varhelyi: Orban’s man –
Hungary’s Varhelyi has made his share of enemies during the past five years as the EU’s enlargement and neighbourhood commissioner.
An ally of right-wing populist Viktor Orban, he has repeatedly been accused of being a spoke in the wheels on issues from Ukraine’s push for membership to support for the Palestinians.
The 52-year-old is expected to land a less influential role this time and will face a tough confirmation hearing in the European Parliament — especially after he was caught on hot mic calling MEPs “idiots”.
But while he’s put plenty of backs up in Brussels, some diplomats say at least they have learned to work with him, and if he is blocked then Orban could propose someone even less cooperative.
