What lies behind von der Leyen’s campaign against Kallas

Brussels. The French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, yesterday expressed his support for Kaja Kallas, after the Financial Times reported that France and Germany wanted to dismantle the European External Action Service (EEAS), led by the High Representative, and transfer its powers to the Member States and the Commission. “Together we are working for a strong Europe, faithful to our values and convictions,” Barrot wrote on X, thanking Kallas for taking part in an event in Paris with Palestinian and Israeli civil society representatives. Diplomats at the Quai d’Orsay deny any intention to undermine the EEAS or its leadership. On the contrary, France wishes to strengthen the High Representative. “We are counting on a strong EEAS,” Barrot had said at the EU ambassadors’ conference in March. The French minister had also issued a warning to Ursula von der Leyen, who has a habit of usurping powers she does not possess in foreign policy. The Commission must respect “the letter and the spirit of the Treaties”. The French document cited by the Financial Times is an informal discussion paper setting out three options. The preferred option is to give the High Representative greater weight within the Commission, turning her into a genuine vice-president with direct control over policies relating to foreign affairs (trade, development, the defence industry). However, the City newspaper chose to focus on the scenario of a split. The French document has been “exploited”, a source from a Member State explains to Il Foglio. The leak is part of “a personal agenda”, confirms a second diplomat.

Von der Leyen has waged a campaign to undermine Kallas’s authority and ability to operate. In her second Commission, she has created new portfolios for commissioners, whose remit should fall to the EEAS. “The Defence Commissioner should be dealing with the defence industry, but her ideas go far beyond that. There is the Commissioner for the Mediterranean and the Commissioner for International Partnerships,” explains the source. For Kallas, “it is difficult to even exist”. Von der Leyen’s management of power within the EU has tangible consequences. One example will be on the table at Monday’s meeting of foreign ministers: some Member States had called for prohibitive tariffs to be imposed on products imported from West Bank settlements. This is a trade measure that does not require unanimity amongst Member States, unlike sanctions. A qualified majority is sufficient. However, the proposal must be put forward by the Commission, and von der Leyen has ordered that the whole matter be blocked. The Commission President has also refused to allow Kallas to appoint at least one senior official to the EEAS, on the grounds that this would have strengthened his position. The European External Action Service is currently without a Secretary-General and two Deputy Secretaries-General.

Kallas has many shortcomings. She is considered too focused on Russia. Upon her arrival, she dismissed officials close to her predecessor, Josep Borrell, as they were deemed too independent. She chose to appoint a Secretary-General of the EEAS with administrative responsibilities (who left after a year), underestimating the need to cultivate relations with member states, or at least the larger ones. Kallas often puts forward proposals without consulting them. Many governments recognise the problems of the EEAS, which was designed for a different era, when geopolitics was a peaceful exercise for diplomats. However, Kallas has to manage “27 member states with very different ideas”, explains the source. “The biggest problem with EU foreign policy is a divided Council,” says the second diplomat. Furthermore, “the Commission could do much better at combining all the instruments, without creating silos,” adds the diplomat. This would mean giving Kallas more clout within the Commission – exactly the opposite of what von der Leyen wants.