Next, the Europa Today newsletter that every Sunday morning tells you what will happen in the coming European week, edited by Alfonso Bianchi (for comments, suggestions or criticisms write to [email protected]).
Top of the agenda
Fitto’s exam – Next week it will be the executive vice presidents’ turn to pass the hurdle of parliamentary hearings. On Tuesday 12 November morning it will be Raffaele Fitto’s turn. The Italian candidate will be hearing in the Regional Affairs Committee and for three hours the deputies will question him on the priorities of his future role, but also on his commitment to defending the fundamental values of the European Union.
Battle is announced – It won’t be a walk in the park for Fitto, with socialists, liberals and greens contesting the attribution of the role of executive vice president to a member of a radical right party who (at least officially) is not part of the majority that supports Ursula von der Leyen. It is not excluded that he could be ‘postponed’ like the Hungarian candidate to underline the disagreement.
Simul stabunt, simul cadent – But it is ruled out that he could be rejected, with the Popular Party (of which Fitto was a member at the time of Forza Italia) who are forming a shield around him and are threatening to also topple the head of the Spanish Teresa Ribera if that of the Spaniard were to fall ‘Italian. Simul stabunt, simul cadentsaid Forzista Fulvio Martusciello, resorting to an old Latin adage which means “together they will stand or together they will fall”.
Government ECR – For its part, the Conservative group is showing itself to be more about governing than fighting, and so far has given its support to all the designated commissioners. In this way it aims to show itself as a responsible group that the majority Ursula can count on in times of need. Or rather on which the popular ones can count, creating alternative majorities to the official one as has already happened several times in the Chamber.
COP29 is underway – The new United Nations Climate Conference kicks off on Monday 11 November in Baku, Azerbaijan, which will end on the 22nd and will bring together 197 countries plus the European Union. It will be the 29th global meeting to discuss and decide how to address global warming since the first “Conference of the Parties” in 1995.
Trump’s shadow – Even though he has not yet taken office as president of the United States, Donald Trump will in fact be one of the protagonists of the conference. The fear is that the Republican vote could lead to a US withdrawal from international climate agreements, thus weakening efforts to fight global warming.
The absences – Absences are causing discussion more than attendances. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, the Brazilian president Lula, nor the German chancellor Olaf Scholz, busy managing the government crisis in Berlin, will not be in Baku. Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be there but neither will von der Leyen, who is involved in the transition phase between the outgoing and incoming Commission.
Other hot topics
The growth of the EU – The Commission will present its autumn economic forecast on Friday 15 November. Commissioner for Economic Affairs Paolo Gentiloni should be the spokesperson for good news and confirm growth of around 0.8 percent in the EU. The expansion is expected to be better than expected in Spain, Germany and France, but still very moderate and low.
EU budget – On Friday 15 November there will be a conciliation table between Parliament and the EU Council to find an agreement on the community budget for 2025. An Ecofin meeting is scheduled for that day in Brussels, with the Economy and Finance ministers who could approve any agreement if it is reached.
Mini Plenary – Wednesday 13th and Thursday 14th mini-plenary session in Brussels of the European Parliament, with MEPs who will discuss the results of the October and November European Council meetings but will also discuss the prospects for relations between the EU and the United States after the election of Donald Trump.
Deforestation – The House will approve on Thursday 14th the decision to postpone by one year, from 2025 to 2026, the entry into force of the new regulation to combat so-called ‘imported deforestation’, a regulation accused by European companies of increasing bureaucracy and costs for the sector. The Eudr regulation (Regulation on Deforestation-free products), aims to prevent the entry into our markets of products resulting from the excessive exploitation of the planet’s forested areas.
Putin’s ghost fleet – On the same day, MEPs will also vote on a resolution calling for a crackdown on Russia’s so-called ghost fleet. Moscow is accused of having created a fleet of ships registered in non-G7 countries to circumvent Western sanctions and continue exporting oil to countries where it could not otherwise do so.
The European CIA – Thursday 14th debate in the Chamber with Sauli Niinisto on his report on the EU’s civil and military preparedness and readiness. The former Finnish president’s report calls for, among other things, greater coordination between the services intelligence of the various member countries, to aim for the creation of a sort of community CIA in the future.
Rebuilding Ukraine – The Rebuild Ukraine conference will be held on Wednesday 13th and Thursday 14th in Warsaw, Poland. The event focuses on buildings and energy resilience and brings together key stakeholders to plan infrastructure-related recovery and reconstruction activities and projects to attract the investments needed to rebuild Ukraine’s war-ravaged economy.
Barnier’s mission – On Wednesday 13th the French Prime Minister Michel Barnier will arrive in Brussels and meet the President of the Commission von der Leyen, and Commissioners Dombrovskis and Gentiloni. His government is struggling to bring the nation’s deficit back to acceptable levels, with forecasts for this year putting it at 6.1%, well above the limits allowed by Brussels.
Five articles from the week just ended
“If Trump imposes tariffs they will backfire on him”
Any tariffs will ultimately “reduce societal well-being on both the business and consumer side of the United States,” argues Professor J. Scott Marcus, a researcher at the Brussels think tank Ceps
The EU risks a trade war with Trump’s US and worsening relations with China
“Europe will be a tool of the republican to counter Beijing, rather than a partner with its own priorities,” explains Ian Hernandez, researcher at the think tank European Policy Center
“With Trump’s election the EU will increase support for Kiev, winning the war remains the only option”
For Mihkelson, president of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Estonian Parliament and member of the party of High Representative Kallas, “it is time to stop hiding behind the USA, we must spend more on defense”
The hearings of European commissioners: what they are and how they take place
The candidate to fill a position in the community executive must pass the examination of Parliament and undergo a real questioning by the deputies. Here’s how the process works
Slap to Orbán: the Hungarian commissioner ‘sent back’
Hearings for the commissioners of von der Leyen’s new team are underway in Brussels, but Budapest candidate Olivier Varhelyi has not (yet) obtained the green light from the deputies
