Von der Leyen has been convened to unveil her proposed college of Commissioners, and Orbán is set for a heated reception in plenary.
A four-day sitting of the European Parliament kicks off on Monday, with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán the headlining acts.
But question marks hang over the appearance of both leaders, as von der Leyen’s line-up of new Commissioners risks unravelling at the last minute, and major flooding in central Europe could dissuade the Hungarian premier from travelling to Strasbourg.
Von der Leyen has been convened to unveil her 26-strong team of nominated European Commissioners – and the policy portfolios she will ask them to steer – during a meeting with the parliament’s president and political leaders on Tuesday morning.
But on Monday, Thierry Breton – the French European Commissioner who had been nominated for another term – abruptly resigned from his post and pulled out from the race, accusing von der Leyen of personally lobbying France to withdraw his candidature.
“You asked France to withdraw my name – for personal reasons that you have in no instance discussed directly with me – and offered, as a political trade-off, an allegedly more influential portfolio for France in the future College,” Breton’s resignation letter, shared on X, reads.
Political infighting in Slovenia, where the opposition is blocking the legally required confirmation hearing of the government’s candidate, Marta Kos, also risks derailing the formation of von der Leyen’s next Commission and trapping the powerful executive in limbo.
The Commission has so far insisted von der Leyen will attend the meeting, which has already been postponed once due to delays, despite the possibility she will not be able to divvy up portfolios unless Kos’s candidature is signed off.
“It’s a long time until Tuesday. They say 24 hours is a long time in politics and it certainly applies to institutional procedures,” the Commission’s chief spokesperson, Eric Mamer said on Friday, adding that the executive was following developments in Slovenia closely.
“The intention is to go to the Conference of Presidents on Tuesday and to present the college,” Mamer added, despite the prospect of von der Leyen divvying up the portfolios before Slovenia confirms its candidates remaining unlikely.
Orbán will address the Strasbourg plenary on Wednesday in a routine speech part of Hungary’s six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the EU. It comes amid mounting concern in Brussels over Hungarian plans to provide easy visa access to Russian and Belarusian workers, a move the EU executive says puts the security of the passport-free Schengen zone at risk.
Lawmakers will also debate July’s disputed presidential poll in Venezuela and the ensuing political crisis. Right-leaning lawmakers are expected to table a resolution – which, if approved, would carry no legal weight – recognising opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez as the legitimate winner.
Von der Leyen in the crossfire
Von der Leyen’s rendez-vous with parliamentary political leaders is part of revamped rules to allow the parliament more oversight of how the Commission chief pieces together her team.
It piles the pressure on von der Leyen to divvy up the portfolios in a way that doesn’t alienate the mainstream, pro-European parties that lent her their support during her re-election bid, namely the Liberals, the Socialists and the Greens.
Regardless of whether the political deadlock in Slovenia will allow her to unveil her full range of policy portfolios and roster of candidates, von der Leyen is likely to come under pressure from political leaders over the power roles in her next executive.
The centre-left Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group has already fired warnings over leaked reports that nominees hailing from her own EPP group will be handed the most influential portfolios, including key ‘social’ beats in the group’s sights.
ADVERTISEMENTThe group has also censured leaked plans to make Italy’s nominee, Raffaele Fitto of the hard-right European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), an executive vice president with a heavyweight economic mandate. The socialists had made their support for von der Leyen’s second term conditional on keeping the institutional guardrails on Giorgia Meloni and her hard-right allies.
A raft of other concerns could be voiced from all sides of the political spectrum – including the lack of female candidates.
Orbán’s face-off
Orbán’s address to plenary – expected to take place on Wednesday – was originally pencilled in for the July plenary session but postponed, partly due to outcry over Orbán’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
At this time, it remains unclear whether the heavy floods that hit swathes of central Europe over the weekend could prevent the Hungarian premier from attending. EPP chairman Manfred Weber has supported an offer, made by Hungarian opposition party TISZA, to delay Orbán’s appearance due to the floods, which have affected several EU member states including Hungary.
ADVERTISEMENTThe encounter will be a rare opportunity for EU lawmakers to directly confront Orbán over a raft of recent statements and actions that have brought tensions between Budapest and Brussels to a boiling point.
On Tuesday, MEPs will debate the Hungarian decision to open up its “National Card” worker visa scheme to Russian and Belarusian nationals, paving the way towards permanent residency.
The EU executive fears the scheme could undermine the security of the passport-free Schengen travel zone, allowing “potential Russian spies and saboteurs easy EU access,” and has asked for clarifications in a letter to Budapest.
The Hungarian government has responded to that letter, a Commission official told Euronews.
ADVERTISEMENTAn escalating spat over migration policy, which has seen Budapest threaten to bus irregular migrants from the Hungarian-Serbian border to Brussels, has also inflamed exasperation with the Hungarian premier.
The EU executive has denounced the plans as a clear violation of EU law, vowing to use “all powers” to ensure Budapest complies with its legal obligations.
Hungary’s threats are a direct retaliation for a €200-million lump-sum fine imposed by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in June for the country’s failure to guarantee the right to asylum. The Court has also asked Budapest to pay €1 million per day until it brings its asylum policies in line with EU laws.
Hungary has so far missed one deadline to pay the €200 million, with the second deadline set to expire on Tuesday. Orbán claims the EU owes his government money for failing to cover the €2 billion it has spent on “protecting the EU’s external borders.”
ADVERTISEMENTVenezuela vote
July’s disputed presidential poll in Venezuela will be debated on Tuesday, with lawmakers expected to vote on a non-biding resolution on Thursday.
The bloc’s 27 foreign ministers have jointly rejected Nicolás Maduro’s claim to re-election, but stopped short of joining the US in recognising opponent Edmundo González as the legitimate President-elect.
González has since claimed political asylum in Spain, where the socialist prime minister Pedro Sánchez is refraining to recognise his victory due to a lack of verified evidence, despite the Spanish Congress of Deputies passing a motion recognising González as the legitimate winner.
The same political divides will likely emerge in the Strasbourg chamber.
ADVERTISEMENTAccording to a draft seen by Euronews, the centre-right EPP group – the biggest in the hemicycle – will table a motion that “recognises Edmundo González Urrutia as the legitimate and democratically elected president of Venezuela” and urging all EU countries to do the same.
The motion also “calls on the EU and its member states to request an international arrest warrant against Nicolas Maduro for crimes against humanity for all the grave violations of human rights he committed.”
