The European Commission has made a precedent-setting move to mediate between the country’s main political parties and help restore long-stalled judicial supremacy amid fresh political turmoil that undermines Madrid’s credibility on the EU stage. We are gradually digesting Spain’s requests.
“It is unusual for the European Commission to take on such a responsibility and we were asked to respond just before Christmas, so please give us time to ensure that the way we respond is informative and helps resolve the issue,” the European Commission said. said Eric Mummer, a spokesperson for . Monday.
On December 23, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of the Socialist Party and center-right opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijó negotiated the appointment of politically independent members to the highest judicial body, the General Council for the Judiciary (CGPJ). agreed to request the committee to mediate. Furthermore, we will completely review these selection methods.
The European Commission, which has often seen member states imploring President Ursula von der Leyen to stay away from national affairs, appeared to have been caught off guard by such an unusual request and told Spain: “It will help the country move forward,” he said, asking for time to give an answer. The process is moving forward,” Mummer said.
He urged Spain to “remember that this is the responsibility of the Spanish national authorities, not the European Commission.”
The European Commission’s quest to find a suitable and honest broker has become even more difficult with EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders being eyed as a potential arbitrator. be elected The coming months are likely to be busy as he serves as Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
The CGPJ, which governs Spain’s judiciary and protects its independence, has been under criticism since 2018 due to a long-running feud between the Socialists (PSOE) and the centre-right (PP), but both parties Committee members could not be updated. Their mandate expired five years ago.
Although this issue has been raised repeatedly in the European Commission’s annual rule of law report, to date these warnings have either not been addressed or accusations of dereliction of duty exchanged between Spain’s main political forces. forgotten in the barrage of To win a few more votes in local and national elections.
Let us not forget that in September, Mr. Sánchez loudly declared that Spain was ready to abandon its “peripheral role” and move into the major league of EU countries, demonstrating its leadership.
Sánchez said at the time: “For decades we have been content to follow positions set by other larger or more influential member states, as peripheral countries, as secondary actors in the negotiations in Brussels.” ” he said.
But how can a country that cannot solve its own domestic problems teach leadership lessons to other member states?
This is not the first time Spain has sent an international mediator to deal with domestic political issues. The Socialist Party government and the Catalan Independence Party (Sánchez’s support is essential) have recently held constructive dialogue with the Catalan Independence Party. director Words from El Salvadoran diplomat Francisco Galindo Vélez.
This is also not the first time Spain has shocked EU institutions by raising domestic issues.
As Euractiv Already reported, flash request A proposal by Spain’s EU Council president in September to make Catalan, Basque and Galician official languages of the EU was seen as a desperate attempt by socialists to get Catalan nationalists to support their government. It was not well-received by diplomats from the member countries that considered it.
Most recently, domestic political turmoil in Spain has engulfed Brussels after the Socialist Party agreed a controversial amnesty law with the Catalans, while the conservative opposition has threatened to debate the issue in the European Parliament’s plenary session. I asked for it.
The European Commission was therefore caught in the middle of a frenzy of letters exchanged by Catalans, socialists, centre-right and far-right forces, interfering with Mr von der Leyen and Mr Lenders in their favor. I realized that I was begging for something.
Instead of learning how to deal with domestic problems, Spain seems to have trained its committee to expect the same, which is not a hallmark of leadership and unbecoming of the eurozone’s fourth-largest economy.
Summary
Education Minister Gabriel Attal was appointed France’s prime minister on Tuesday, months before EU elections, in hopes of charting a new clear political course after severe political instability that has eroded President Emmanuel Macron’s popularity. It was done.
The European Commission announced on Tuesday that it is investigating the nature of the relationship between technology multinational Microsoft and ChatGPT maker OpenAI after the recent removal and reinstatement of their CEOs highlighted the close relationship between the two companies.
Belgium, which holds the Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers, has proposed changes to the internal structure of the EU institutions dealing with digital issues to better make Europe’s voice heard at international level.
A year after a total ban on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was proposed in the EU, new research has found that PFAS can affect people from the stage of fetal development.
Prime Minister Alexander de Croo and Foreign Minister Haja Rachbib said Belgium’s experience in facing political challenges will guide them through the many challenges of the next six months of election campaigning.
People with intellectual disabilities are legally prevented from voting in seven EU countries, making them effectively inaccessible in June’s European elections, says Inclusion Europe Campaign Group. said the head of Euractiv in an interview.
France’s main energy priorities for 2030 primarily promote nuclear power as a means to phase out fossil fuels, but make no mention of the EU’s renewable energy targets.
please note…
- The informal meeting of the Ministers of Employment and Social Affairs runs from Wednesday to Friday.
- Maroš Šefčović will meet with leaders of the European Network of Transmission System Operators on Wednesday.
The views are those of the author
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic/Alice Taylor]