The European Commission has had a tumultuous start to 2021. It has faced criticism for its COVID-19 vaccine procurement programme and stoked tensions with the UK when it proposed instituting border checks between Ireland and Northern Ireland to stop the potential export of vaccines to the UK.
Shortly after, the bloc’s High Representative for foreign affairs had a disastrous trip to Russia. At the same time, the Commission is gearing up to start implementing the EU’s recovery fund as many European economies are among those hardest hit in the world by the pandemic.
- Will the vaccine debacle have any political implications for the Commission or its president, Ursula von der Leyen?
- What is the outlook for EU foreign policy?
- The EU will also have to decide on the future of its currently suspended fiscal rules after the pandemic. What is this debate likely to look like?
We will be joined by Mehreen Khan, EU correspondent at the Financial Times to discuss the current challenges faced by the Commission and which debates in the EU to look out for in the coming year.
Participants
Speaker: Mehreen Khan, Brussels Correspondent, Financial Times
Chair: Pepijn Bergsen, Research Fellow, Europe Programme, Chatham House.