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It was a big week in Euractiv HQ and a big week for the EU, with Von der Leyen’s annual SOTEU speech highlighting the need to boost defence capabilities as Russia rained drones on Ukraine, and allegedly directed several into Poland.
Here are the top stories.
Roundup
Enlarging SAFE – The European Commission has received requests from Turkey and South Korea for their industries to join the bloc’s military procurement €150 billion loan scheme, in exchange for a financial contribution.
The balance of power – The European Commission and Parliament reached a deal on Tuesday to recalibrate the balance of powers between them. The agreement will see Parliament get more and faster information on non-binding international agreements, such as the controversial 2023 Memorandum of Understanding with Tunisia and more relevant commissioners appearing in plenary debates.
Trump’s energy secretary speaks to Euractiv – The EU’s pledge to buy $750 billion of American oil, gas and nuclear over the next three years is part of a general reset in global energy relations, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Euractiv. “I think it’s a long-term change,” Wright said in an interview in Brussels on Friday. “When you buy energy, particularly liquefied natural gas, there’s a huge amount of infrastructure that’s built.”
How safe are e-cigarettes? – It’s a question that a new study launched by the European Commission will seek to answer. The enquiry comes amid rising tensions with the tobacco industry and concerns about alternative tobacco products and young people’s access to them.
State of the European Union – Ursula von der Leyen used her annual address to the European Parliament on Wednesday to outline how the EU should gear up for a potential military confrontation with Russia and shed its old identity as a mere economic club. “Our Union is fundamentally a peace project,” she said. “But the truth is that the world of today is unforgiving.”
Opinions
Europe’s own Iron Lady? – ‘Team’ is not the original four-letter word – it is an effective way of leading and organisation, managing people and delivering outcomes. It is time von der Leyen learnt it, and used it, writes Ilana Bet-El.
Looking for our competitive edge – Mario Draghi released his landmark report on Europe’s competitiveness one year ago, highlighting a lack of innovation, too few global firms, capital markets that fail to finance growth, and a regulatory jungle that kills scale and agility. Europe’s leaders promised to act but twelve months later, action is scarce, writes Andrea Dugo.
Does Brussels stifle free thinkers? – If Leonardo da Vinci walked the corridors of Brussels today, would he be celebrated as Europe’s greatest mind, or dismissed as an unfocused generalist? asks Chris Kremidas-Courtney.
