Nine months before the European elections, Ursula von der Leyen presented her results on the morning of Wednesday September 13, without indicating whether she would run for a second term. She notably defended the Green Deal and called for preparations for EU enlargement.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, delivered her speech on the state of the European Union on Wednesday September 13th to parliamentarians gathered in Strasbourg. On the agenda: competition from Chinese electric cars, a European green pact, and then a politically irritating subject: the enlargement of the Union. Adina Revol, spokesperson for the European Commission in France, is the eco guest of franceinfo on Wednesday.
franceinfo: What can we learn from this fourth and final speech of Ursula von der Leyen’s current term?
Adina Revol: This is an important speech 300 days before the European elections, which took place in Strasbourg in front of representatives of European citizens. This is a great moment in European democracy and in front of the Assembly of European Deputies, the President took stock of what she has accomplished over the past year. (…) She projected Europe onto the year to come, particularly from an economic point of view, by announcing the activation of this clause, of this investigation against Chinese subsidies.
Applying coercive measures against Chinese electric cars today, isn’t it too late?
The European Commission has already established a certain amount of data. Now, the idea is to see if these subsidies are anti-competitive. And then the Commission can provisionally impose trade defense measures.
The President of the European Commission focused mainly on the famous Green Deal, a fair deal “to ensureshe says, the ecological transition”. Can this pact really achieve consensus?
There is already a consensus on the Green Deal because, few people know, we have a European climate law. We are the only continent that actually has a climate law, so these are not just political commitments. We have a law for climate neutrality. For 2050.
Is this the right time to talk about the enlargement of Europe at a time when this subject is controversial and greatly divides Europeans?
So, the President reminded us today, the next step will be the report on enlargement in October. The place of Ukraine, Moldova and the Western Balkans will be discussed at that time. She gave the example of this young Ukrainian writer who was killed, bringing her son to protect him in Europe. When she reached the border of the Czech Republic, she cried because she was in Europe. And the president ended her speech by saying that the completion of Europe will be the best investment in our prosperity and in our future.