EU leaders agreed on next EU Commission president and EU foreign policy chief

On the night of June 27–28, EU leaders approved Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as European Commission president.

The EU leaders reached an agreement on the names of the next EU Commission president, European Council president, and EU foreign policy chief. Politico reported this, citing its diplomatic sources.

The European Union’s heads of state and government have decided to keep Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission.

The European Council has appointed former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa to the position. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas will lead European diplomacy.

At a press conference after the EU leaders’ meeting, Kaja Kallas said of the trio for the three top EU jobs, “We make a great team.”

Via live feed from Lisbon, former Prime Minister António Costa appeared to say that he was “delighted” to be part of the “team” with Ursula von der Leyen and Kaja Kallas.

The European Parliament will vote on the final decision on July 18. Von der Leyen needs to receive at least 361 votes.

On Monday, June 10, the European Parliament announced the results of the elections.

According to the results, the center-right European People’s Party (EPP), headed by Ursula von der Leyen, will become the largest political group in the new European Parliament.

The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) is in second place. The fourth in the rankings is the Renew Europe political group, which supports Ursula von der Leyen, as well as Ukraine’s accession to the EU.

The distribution of seats in the European Parliament is as follows:

• European People’s Party (EPP): 188 seats;
• Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D): 136 seats;
• Renew Europe (pro-European political group “Renew Europe”): 75 seats;
• European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR): 83 seats;
• Identity and Democracy (ID): 58 seats;
• Greens/European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA): 54 seats;
• Independent or unaffiliated MPs: 45 seats;
• Leftists: 39 seats;
• Others have 42 seats.