Brussels 28.06.2024 The EU leaders have nominated incumbent European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen for a second five-year term. The Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas was promoted as the EU top diplomat, and former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa was endorsed as the next president of EU Council.

They represent centre right, socialists, and liberals political families. However at present only Mr.Costa got his job, while two others have to obtain the approval of the European Parliament.

The leadership package is presented to Europeans as a continuity for the EU at a time of geopolitical uncertainty. The imposition of trio was made despite a rise in support for conservative and far right parties in the European Parliament elections earlier this month.

As a result of this neglect of rivals ascendance, Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, and Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban manifested their discontent, voting against the trio, regarded as irrelevant, and out of context.

While Meloni made considerable efforts to create functioning relationship with the EU political mainstream, but at the Summit #EUCO she abstained from the vote for von der Leyen and voted against Costa and Kallas, reflecting political choice of the recent EU elections, which resulted in decline of support for Socialists and Liberals.
While Meloni’ party Fratelli is going to be associated with European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) joining the third in numbers political family in the European Parliament, she was not included in talks on the nominations.

Addressing the Italian Parliament ahead of the #EUCO she was indignant about the fact of that European citizens had expressed their demand to EU to “take a different path”. In a powerful speech Meloni blamed the EU leadership of patronising the citizens, as they are not mature enough to understand to decision taking, and imposing on them the oligarchy as the only acceptable form for democracy.

Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban was also not short of words, while entering the EUCO Summit he said, the European People’s party has built a “coalition of lies and deceit with the Socialists and the Liberals. We cannot and will not support this shameful agreement. This is not what the European people voted for!”
Apparently he voted against Ursula von der Leyen, in favor of Antonio Costa, and abstained from Kaja Kallas nomination.