Tag: Barroso

It is too simplistic to propose that a region could simply remain in the European Union after seceding from its EU member state and that the ‘evaporation theory’ of Belgium's New Flemish Alliance cannot adequately grasp all the political and legal problems which such a scenario would entail, say Guillaume Van der Loo and Merijn Chamon.

Finland's Europe minister Alexander Stubb questioned today (18 September) the need for a change to the European Union's treaty, saying such a move would require too much time and raise uncertainty.

José Manuel Barroso, European Commission President, made an appeal against extremism yesterday (13 September), as demonstrators in Yemen and Egypt attacked US embassies, outraged by a blasphemous American film posted online. 

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso offered a public show of support to Prime Minister Antonis Samaras in his first visit to Greece in three years, but warned that the nearly bankrupt country must make good on promises to reform.

Addressing the European Parliament yesterday (3 July) in Strasbourg, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso slammed British euro-sceptics for their divisive behaviour and  taking pleasure in the eurozone's troubles.

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso has said he will propose a roadmap and "calendar" for more European integration at the next summit of EU leaders on 28-29 June, without discarding the possibility of a treaty change aimed at injecting more federalism into the Union.

The European Commission will issue a 'green paper' on Wednesday (23 November) examining the scope for the introduction of eurobonds as a way to tackle the eurozone debt crisis. But the public consultation it will launch is unlikely to result in concrete proposals until next year, an EU official said.

Commission President José Manuel Barroso is a 'weathervane' who is embracing Socialistic positions to tackle the eurozone crisis because he sniffs that "three big EU countries are turning to the left", prominent Socialists said yesterday (4 October).

In his annual "State of the Union" speech today (28 September), Commission President José Manuel Barroso admitted that the EU was confronted with the most serious crisis of confidence in its history and outlined proposals for moving toward an economic union, calling EU leaders to support further integration.

Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn today (5 August) apologised for “bad communication” that might have added fuel to the burning euro zone crisis. In a lengthy speech laced with explanations he attempted to mollify capitals irritated by a recent letter by his boss, Commission President José Manuel Barroso.

Antonis Samaras, the leader of Greece's main opposition party, the centre-right 'New Democracy', said yesterday (23 June) that he remained opposed to backing the country's austerity plan, seen as crucial for bailing out Greece and saving the euro.

EurActiv's Senior Editor Georgi Gotev takes a look at former EU Commissioner Meglena Kuneva's decision to run in upcoming presidential elections in Bulgaria, arguing that her image as someone with experience and contacts in Brussels could give her a crucial edge.

The European Commission has strongly warned against plans by Copenhagen to introduce controls at its ports and airports, the EU executive announced.

Sunday's (1 May) beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II will be attended by EU officials at the highest level, with Herman Van Rompuy, José Manuel Barroso and Jerzy Buzek all expected in Rome to mark the occasion. By contrast, most EU heads of state have instead chosen to mark Labour Day.

Ahead of a special EU summit on Libya and the South Mediterranean next week, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso described the unfolding events as "a rendez-vous with history". Hours later, UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg spoke of "the biggest geopolitical event of the last decade".

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso said the EU executive "cannot afford to be passive spectators" of the popular revolutions sweeping through North Africa, which he described as "historic". Meanwhile, EU diplomats are preparing sanctions against the regime of Muammar Gaddafi. 

Members of the European Parliament gave a frosty reception to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán yesterday (19 January) in Strasbourg, where he came to deliver the traditional presentation of his country's EU presidency programme.

Vicious cold and deep snow did not discourage European socialists meeting in Warsaw from agreeing a strategy to elect a "winning candidate" to replace José Manuel Barroso at the helm of the European Commission in 2014. EurActiv Poland reports.

Anti-federalists loathe the idea of introducing a transnational list of 25 MEPs in the next European Parliament, because they fear one of them would gain the legitimacy to claim to become the next Commission President, MEP Andrew Duff told EurActiv in an exclusive interview.

The European Commission yesterday (29 September) proposed tough new sanctions for countries who fail to follow the EU's rules on reining in deficits and cutting public debt, in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the Greek sovereign debt crisis.

Speaking at the 20^th Economic Forum for Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in Krynica, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso said he was confident that the 'Europe 2020' economic strategy would succeed where its predecessor had failed. EurActiv Poland reports.

The European Union's trade chief talked up the benefits of a possible deal with Latin America's Mercosur region on Thursday (8 July), facing down strong opposition from environmentalists, farmers and lawmakers.

Introduced by the Lisbon Treaty, the European External Action Service (EEAS) is intended to give the European Union a greater role in foreign policy. It is now operational, though its scope and competences have been the subject of fierce debate among EU countries.

With decades of EU institutional reform and eastern enlargement culminating with the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union is now "as close to the final EU institutional balance as we are likely to get in our lifetimes" and leaders can focus on pressing issues like climate change, energy and food security instead, Tom Spencer, executive director of the European Centre for Public Affairs, told EurActiv in an interview.