The choice
In her campaign pitch Monday night, she told the audience, which included people who followed the live broadcast online and through about 100 watch parties around the world, that she wanted to fight for a Strong Europe for the sake of its children and grandchildren. .
Von der Leyen presented herself as a unifying candidate and a safe pair of hands with the experience to continue leading the Commission in troubled times, warning that Europe faces dangers in the form of attacks from from Vladimir Putin’s proxies who seek to undermine European democracy.
Eickhout won an instant poll taken among spectators. Speaking after the debate, he predicted that von der Leyen’s bid to the ECR would define the rest of the campaign. “What I heard is that she is not excluding (working with the ECR)… We, the Greens, are excluding them and I think this election will then be about that choice,” he said. he declared.
“Within ECR you have the same people who want to weaken Europe, who want to water down our green policies,” he added.
Von der Leyen has already set out the conditions for working with parts of the REC, saying parties joining his putative coalition must be pro-NATO, pro-EU, pro-Ukraine and pro-rule of law.
Von der Leyen made it clear that she would not work with the far-right group Identity and Democracy, during a debate marked by repeated clashes between the far-right group’s representative Anders Vistisen and other candidates, often on the theme of foreign interference in the country. EU.
Barbara Moens contributed reporting.
Politico
