PM Orban: Brussels Ignored the Will of the People

At an informal late-night summit in Brussels, the leaders of member states discussed who should be leading the EU's key institutions – the European Council and the European Commission –, and participants also planned to decide on the person of the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Prime Minister Viktor Orban emphasized that "instead of listening to the electorate, the EPP teamed up with the Socialists and the Liberals. Today, they made a deal and divided the EU's top jobs among themselves," ignoring not only the results of the EP elections but also the will of the European people.

The picture published by the Prime Minister's Press Office shows Hungarian PM Viktor Orban with Slovenian PM Robert Golob and Croatian PM Andrej Plenkovic at an informal EU summit in Brussels on June 17, 2024. (Photo: MTI/PM's Press Office/Benko Vivien Cher)

Almost all of Europe's attention was focused on Brussels, where – for the first time since the European Parliament elections on June 9 - the leaders of member states met for an informal discussion to decide who would lead the EU's most important institutions – the European Council and the European Commission - but they also planned to reach an agreement on the person of the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. As dawn broke on Tuesday, European Council President Charles Michel told reporters in Brussels that no political agreement had been reached on who would hold the three posts. Speaking to journalists, he said that although no agreement had been reached on the EU leaders, the extraordinary working dinner was a good opportunity to exchange views, review the results of the European Parliament elections and prepare for the official Brussels summit of national leaders scheduled for the second half of next week.

The aim of an informal meeting is not to reach actual decisions on leadership positions, but to have an "in-depth exchange of views" on the candidates, he said.

He emphasized that further discussions would be needed next week to bring the positions closer, as participants of the EU summit – slated to take place on June 27-28 – will need to decide on the EU's top leaders and make progress on the bloc's strategic agenda, its direction and objectives for the 2024-2029 period.

Statement after the Informal leaders' meeting ↓ https://t.co/w3D2ItEka1

— Charles Michel (@CharlesMichel) June 17, 2024

According to various sources, outgoing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, a member of the European People's Party (EPP) which won the most seats in the European Parliament elections, enjoys the support of most national leaders. The European Council could be headed by former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa, while Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas could succeed Josep Borrell as EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

On Monday evening, the European Council met for the first time since the European Parliament elections.

French President Emmanuel Macron underlined that decisions on the EU's top jobs have to be given time "to mature." He added that while he did not want to be overly optimistic, he believed that an agreement was within reach. 

He stressed, however, that a final agreement may not be reached before the French elections on June 30 and July 7. Regarding the future prospects of the Renew group in the  EP, Mr Macron emphasized that "things are fine", referring to the good chances of Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas – whose party is a member of this group – being elected as EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, currently acting in a demissionary capacity, said he held bilateral talks with Hungary's prime minister in Brussels. He stressed that the talks had been conducted in a good atmosphere and added that he was "cautiously optimistic" that he would eventually secure Hungary's support for his bid for the post of NATO Secretary General.

Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro told reporters that there had been no formal discussion on the length of the mandate of the next president of the European Council, the body bringing together the leaders of the member states. According to diplomatic sources, the European People's Party, the largest group in the EP, aims to 

split the five-year term of the European Council presidency into two 2.5-year terms, with one half going to an EPP candidate.

Portugal's prime minister confirmed that no decision had been reached regarding the person of the European Commission President, but he remained optimistic that his predecessor, former PM António Costa, would be chosen for the post. According to Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, the strength of the European People's Party has increased since the 2019 elections.

Compared to the last situation, the EPP's strength should now be taken into account when considering the distribution of top posts,

− he stressed.

The final proposal regarding the person of EC President will be submitted by Charles Michel to the European Parliament (EP), where an absolute majority (i.e. at least 361 out of the 720 MEPs) must vote in favor of the candidate. 

If successful, the nomination enables the EP to cast a final vote at its plenary session in Strasbourg, starting on July 16.

Cover photo: The picture published by the Prime Minister's Press Office shows Hungarian PM Viktor Orban with Slovenian PM Robert Golob and Croatian PM Andrej Plenkovic at an informal EU summit in Brussels on June 17, 2024. (Photo: MTI/PM's Press Office/Benko Vivien Cher)