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Brussels – It is not the European People’s Party (EPP) that is playing political games with the evaluation of the candidate European Commissioners, but rather the social democratic S&D group. That’s what Belgian Member of the European Parliament Wouter Beke, who is part of the EPP with his party CD&V, says. “The only thing the EPP wants is for everyone to stick to the agreements made after the elections,” he defends the stance of his group.
In the European Parliament, the 26 candidate commissioners were scrutinized last week. The traditional groups – the Christian democratic EPP, the social democratic S&D and the liberal Renew Europe – have nevertheless reached a stalemate and do not want to approve the six proposed candidate vice-presidents of the Commission. The socialists point the finger at the EPP, but CD&V member of parliament Wouter Beke pushes back.
“The only thing the EPP wants is for everyone to stick to the agreements made after the elections and not play political games,” he tells Belga. The EPP defends the candidacy of Raffaele Fitto, nominated by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and that is not without reason, according to Beke. “The political families have agreed that the socialist Antonio Costa will become President of the European Council, the liberal Kaja Kallas becomes high representative for foreign affairs and EPP’s Roberta Metsola becomes President of the European Parliament. Ursula von der Leyen (EPP) could remain President of the Commission. But the agreement also includes that a socialist will become the executive vice-president of the Commission and that Meloni is allowed to make a nomination.”
The social democrats have difficulty with the fact that Fitto, like the Spanish socialist Teresa Ribera, becomes executive vice-president, but according to the CD&V member, this was precisely part of the broader political agreement. “Italy was promised an important post, which is why Meloni did not oppose the socialist Costa at the time. But if you do not grant this post to Fitto, Italy threatens to come up with a radical figure and then we are much worse off. During his hearing, Fitto did not give a bad impression, after all.”
“Internally, the social democrats find it difficult to sell that a political price must be paid,” says Beke.
11/13/2024
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