Key Takeaways of the Von der Leyen’s State of the Union

On the 13th of September, 2023, President Ursula von der Leyen delivered her much anticipated state of the union speech to the European Parliament. In her speech, President von der Leyen reviewed the events of the past year, while also laying out a vision for the future of the EU for the remainder of her term. This state of the union, however, was not a traditional state of the union speech, with political commentators quickly noting that this speech had far more to do with President von der Leyen’s upcoming reelection campaign. Which will require the support of her political party, the European People’s Party (EPP), alongside the French President Macron’s party (Renew Europe) and the Spanish (Socialists and Democrats).

In many ways, President von der Leyen's speech addressed many of the concerns and criticisms of the conservatives of the EPP, which constitute the largest political group in the European Parliament. The EPP has over the last few months been trying to limit and undermine the European Green Deal, which they have argued will restrict and harm European businesses.? Though President von der Leyen in her speech called for the continuation of the Green Deal, she also went out of her way to promise to support European industry through the transition, while also expressing her appreciation for farmers (a constituency which has protested against certain aspects of the Green Deal).?

To placate Renew Europe, President von der Leyen announced the launching of an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles coming from China, which Paris has been advocating for. However, it should be noted that some French politicians have criticized von der Leyen for not mentioning nuclear energy during her speech. Finally, though not explicit, many political commentators believe that the emphasis on maintaining the Green Deal, is a signal by von der Leyen towards the socialists that the legislation for the most part will stay intact.

Other noteworthy announcements at the State of the Union include an announcement of the establishment of an EU SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) envoy, which will report directly von der Leyen. Additionally, the EU will take actions to establish global governance mechanisms to regulate artificial intelligence. Furthermore, the partnership agreement reached with Tunisia (to prevent migrants from fleeing to the EU) will be expanded to other nations within the region. Finally, the EU will continue to support Ukraine and will move forward to enlargement after years of standstill.