The European Commission has adopted the EU KIDS ACT to improve the online safety of children across the Union. The proposal prohibits social media platforms from allowing access to children under the age of 13 and sets an EU-wide minimum age of 15 for children to open their own accounts, thereby ensuring a phased approach. […]
Debate on the State of the EU: the economy, security, climate change, AI and social media
MEPs discussed the Commission’s work over the past year and the most pressing challenges with President von der Leyen during the annual State of the European Union debate. At the start of the debate, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, said: ‘Our Union has always moved forward because there were people willing to […]
State of the Union 2026
What is SOTEU? The State of the Union Address (SOTEU) is an annual address delivered by the President of the European Commission to the European Parliament, in which the Union’s priorities for the coming year are set out. It is a key moment in EU democracy: an opportunity to reflect on the past year outline […]
EU Leaders move forward on Ukraine, defence and competitiveness during European Council summit
President Ursula von der Leyen participated last October 23 in a summit of the European Council that focused on the EU’s support for Ukraine, Europe’s defence readiness for 2030, and on how to boost the continent’s economy while upholding the EU’s climate goals. The President presented the initiatives that the Commission has been working on over […]
State of the Union (SOTEU) address 2025
On 10 September, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will deliver the State of the Union address. The State of the Union address (SOTEU) is the annual speech in which the President of the European Commission sets out her priorities for the Union for the coming year before the European Parliament. […]
EU-US trade deal
On 27 July 2025, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald J. Trump agreed a deal on tariffs and trade. The transatlantic partnership is a key artery of global trade and is the most significant bilateral trade and investment relationship in the world. EU-US trade in goods and services has doubled over the last decade, surpassing €1.6 trillion in 2024, […]
President Von der Leyen will discuss EU-China relations at the 25th Summit in Beijing.
On 24 July, President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, together with High Representative and Vice-President Kaja Kallas, will be in China for the 25th Summit. There, President von der Leyen, together with President Costa, will meet President Xi Jinping and then Premier Li Qiang. As the EU and China […]
The European Parliament rejects the motion of censure against the European Commission
With 175 votes in favour, 360 against and 18 abstentions, the European Parliament on Thursday rejected a motion of censure against the European Commission. The motion was put to a roll-call vote in plenary. It required a two-thirds majority of the votes cast and the backing of a majority of the members of the […]
Statement by President Von der Ley at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development
“Seville, 30 June 2025 Mr. President of the Conference, Secretary-General Guterres, Presidents, Prime Ministers, Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Let me start with a key fact: last year, development aid worldwide stood at just over $200 billion. The annual investment gap on the Sustainable Development Goals, as Pedro Sánchez has pointed out, is in the […]