EU Council President might resign, potentially opening vacancy for Orban
Photo: OPU
Since the EU Council President, Charles Michel, intends to run in the elections to the European Parliament in June, he may leave his current position.
Michel reported this in an interview with the Belgian newspaper De Standaard, Politico.
"I have decided to run for office in the European elections in 2024," said the head of the European Council.
Michel announced his intention to leave office early and join the Belgian liberal party MR – Mouvement Réformateur (Reformist Movement) in June to participate in the European Parliament elections.
In connection with the announced decision, Michel will leave the chair of the president of the European Council without finalizing it until the end of 2024, when his mandate will expire.
"At the end of June or the beginning of July, the European Council will be able to anticipate this and decide on a successor," he said.
At the same time, Michel did not specify what role he wanted to play in the European Parliament.
"I want to serve where I can be useful. I have no other ambitions. I want to play an active role in European debates and contribute to the promotion of the Europe 2030 project. This will require reforms," Michel said.
It is noted that usually, the role of the president of the European Council goes to the leader of the country presiding over the Council of the EU at that time.
If EU leaders fail to quickly agree on Michel's successor, the presidency of the European Council will temporarily pass to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, the country's leader who will hold the presidency of the EU Council from July 2024 until December.
The presidency of the Council of the EU is rotated from one EU member to another for six months.
This is the first time that the incumbent president of the EU Council will be a candidate in the elections to the European Parliament, and it is also the first time that he leaves office early.
Michel should remain in office until the end of November. While his decision is legally permissible, it puts additional pressure on European leaders, as they usually have more time to reshuffle and negotiate during a major redistribution of the EU's top jobs.
After the elections to the European Parliament, which will be held on June 6-9 in all 27 EU countries, European leaders will meet on June 17 and then on June 27-28. It is at these meetings that they will probably try to reach an agreement on Michel's replacement.
Hungary's position regarding Ukraine
As you know, Hungary and Ukraine have had almost no high-level contact since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. However, in recent weeks, they have been active at different levels.
Earlier, Zelensky said that during a short meeting in Argentina, he asked Orbán to name at least one reason why Ukraine should not be in the EU.
Orbán and his allies have repeatedly stated that his opposition to aid to Ukraine is not related to EU funding of Hungary. But as the summit drew to a close, he finally named his price: the remaining €20 billion payment.
The Hungarian leader also noted that he has 75 more opportunities to block Ukraine's accession process, as each stage requires unanimous approval by EU members.
It is worth noting that the EU approved the allocation of €10 billion to Hungary last week. However, any further allocation of funds is likely to be met with stiff resistance. The other €20 billion, which belongs to Hungary, is held under a separate procedure that gives Brussels the leverage it needs.
The issue of aid to Ukraine will be discussed at a separate EU summit in early February.
To approve an agreement to provide a package of aid to Ukraine worth €50 billion in 2024-2027, the member states of the European Union are considering the possibility of depriving Hungary of the right to vote.
