V/I Weekly Roundup 12.9.19

Below find the highlights from the week as well as stories that will be developing in the near future.

European Commission appointees: On Monday President-elect of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, unveiled her chosen team of commissioners for the next five years. There are a number of positive signals for the region, notably the fact that Croatian politician Dubravka Šuica was nominated for the position of Vice-President with the Democracy and Demography portfolio. In addition, Maria Gabriel from Bulgaria was selected as Commissioner for with a portfolio of Innovation and Youth, also covering education and research, of particular importance to New Europe.

These promising choices, however, were overshadowed by other nominations. First, Polish candidate Janusz Wojciechowski is currently under investigation of the European Anti-fraud Office for irregularities regarding the reimbursement of travel costs. The nomination of László Trócsányi also raised a few eyebrows, given his record on justice and questionable interference in the neighbourhood. Trócsányi signed off asylum for the convicted politician Nikola Gruevski of North Macedonia and helped arms dealers escape to Russia. If the Hungarian nominee gets the green light, he would become Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood.

Finally, Romanian MEP Rovana Plumb was announced as candidate for the portfolio of Transport, although she escaped investigation regarding a corruption case in 2017. It remains to be seen whether some of these controversial candidates will make it through the hearings at the European Parliament. Each candidate will be subject to a three-hour interrogation by the parliamentary committee(s) responsible for the portfolio.