Several major candidates vying for the presidency of the European Commission held a debate on Monday (April 29), amid tensions between Russia and Ukraine, as well as strained relations between the EU and China due to economic and trade disputes and espionage suspicions. The political infiltration of China (CCP) and Russia attracted attention from the candidates.
The incumbent president seeking re-election, Ursula von der Leyen, along with seven other candidates from various political factions, participated in the debate hosted by the political news media Politico and the Maastricht University’s Studio Europa Maastricht.
Von der Leyen, the candidate of the European Parliament’s largest party, the conservative European People’s Party (EPP), defended her policies on various issues ranging from climate change, security, economy to democracy. Recently, controversies have arisen in Europe regarding foreign influence. An assistant from Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party was accused of engaging in espionage activities for the CCP, and the UK has also prosecuted espionage suspects.
Concerns have been raised about far-right and populist political forces serving as gateways for the infiltration of Russia and China (CCP), which became a contentious topic during the debate.
Anders Vistisen, candidate from the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, criticized the EU’s bureaucracy by stating, “Brussels has become a morass,” and said he would dismiss 10,000 bureaucrats at the EU headquarters if elected.
Vistisen described Von der Leyen’s term as a disaster, criticizing her for allowing millions of illegal immigrants into Europe and being embroiled in the Pfizer scandal, saying, “Identity and Democracy make the first move to dismiss you!”
The Identity and Democracy group (ID) consists of anti-immigration and Euro-skeptic parties such as Alternative for Germany (AfD), National Rally in France, and Lega in Italy.
In response, Von der Leyen countered by saying the AfD candidate “is under investigation for collusion with Putin” and his election rhetoric echoes Russian propaganda lies. She stated, “Critics should clean their own house before criticizing others!”
Green Party candidate Bas Eickhoute also mentioned that all current issues are inevitably linked to the influence of China (CCP) and Russia.
Eickhoute mentioned, “China (CCP) is buying off the Belgian right-wing Flemish Interest Party, as well as the Alternative for Germany (AfD), we also see how the French far-right leans towards Russia, and the Austrian populist party Freedom Party (FPO), they all belong to the ID group.”
“Before lecturing others, clean up your own backyard,” Eickhoute said.
While Von der Leyen refused to cooperate with the “agents” of Putin, she did not rule out forming an alliance with the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR) to gain a majority.
Von der Leyen stated, “This largely depends on the composition of the parliament.”
During the debate, Von der Leyen also mentioned the possibility of implementing a TikTok ban similar to the one in the United States in the future. Currently, Brussels has initiated two investigations into TikTok under the Digital Services Act.
“The EU is the first global organization to ban TikTok on corporate phones. Clearly, we are aware of the dangers of TikTok, and we have put in place many regulations for this,” Von der Leyen said.
From June 6 to 9, the 720 members of the next European Parliament will be elected by the 370 million citizens of the 27 EU countries.
Following the European Parliament elections in June, the leaders of the 27 EU member states will nominate the President of the European Commission. Traditionally, leaders select candidates from the party bloc that ranks first in the European Parliament elections.