European People's Party officials elected as Valencia congress ends

Here's a livecast recorded earlier by our on the ground reporter Meabh McMahon behind the scenes at the congress and in discussion with Euronews' Sandor Zsiros, capturing the atmosphere of the event, including the strange phenomenon of the blackout on Monday in Spain. It's our sign off from Euronews as the congress has now concluded.

Ursula von der Leyen "fully stands" by the European Green Deal, the chief spokesperson of the European Commission said on Wednesday afternoon.

It comes as von der Leyen attended the EPP congress in Valencia, where speakers took the stage to denounce the Green Deal and demand a sweeping push of deregulation. Italy's Antonio Tajani called it "a disaster" while Germany's Friedrich Merz described some environmental rules as "nonsense."

"I can confirm that President von der Leyen fully stands by the Green Deal," the spokesperson, Paula Pinho, said in response to a question from Euronews.

"This was a flagship of hers in the first mandate. We are now in the stage of implementation of the various legal proposals which were agreed then by member states. It's no longer a Commission project. It was embraced by member states in different pieces of legislation."

Pinho noted some "adjustments" to the Green Deal have been made to streamline its implementation, particularly regarding reporting obligations for companies.

Von der Leyen "is committed to the de-carbonisation of our energy system and to make sure that our future generations, our children, our grandchildren, have a planet where they can still live, in consideration of the many other issues, notably competitiveness, notably energy security," Pinho added. "But the main objective, the main vision of a carbon-neutral continent by 2050 is there (and) remains there.

While the EPP has adopted a highly critical stance on the Green Deal, the other three centrist parties in the European Parliament (the liberals, the socialists and the greens) are still supportive of the original legislation. Von der Leyen needs the votes of all centrist forces to advance her agenda.

The results of the party elections are now in, seeing unopposed elections for the Spanish MEP Dolors Montserrat as secretary general (93% of votes cast in the congress) and Francois-Xavier Bellamy as treasurer (with 91% of votes cast).

Meanwhile the ten vice-presidents have also now been announced, and it seems  former Bulgarian foreign minister Mariya Gabriel and Flemish politician Wouter Beke have missed out on the positions, which have gone in order of votes to:

1. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (452 votes)
2. Italian Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani (438)
3. MEP David McAllister (432)
4. MEP Siegfried Mureșan (380)
5. MEP Andrzej Halicki (368)
6. MEP Dubravka Šuica (362)
7. Austrian EU Commissioner Magnus Brunner (356)
8. Greek deputy prime minister Kostis Hatzidakis (328)
9. former commissioners Mairead McGuinness (321)
10. Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel (287) 

The new team will gather on stage for a family photo before proceedings close.

The congress is currently presenting resolutions in support of Ukraine and Armenia and on Georgia. "Georgians have made a European choice and we must stand in full solidarity to show their voices are heard against repression." Those resolutions are passing without opposition.

We're now waiting to see which of the 12 candidates for those vice presidential jobs may have missed the cut - only ten places are available.

The conference is now hearing from Venezuela's exiled presidential candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who the European Parliament voted last September to recognise as the "legitimate and democratically elected President of Venezuela." That vote marked the first time in the new legislature that mainstream conservatives ignore the cordon sanitaire and join ranks with the far right.

Right-wing MEPs unite to recognise González as Venezuelan president

It is the first time the Strasbourg hemicycle’s bolstered right-wing factions unite in a vote since June’s European elections. #EuropeNews…

José María Alfredo Aznar López the former Spanish prime minister from 1996 to 2004 tells the conference that Europe is “not a freerider” in its trade relations with the US, we are a pillar.

Aznar criticises the government of socialist Pedro Sanchez, which he describes as corrupt, and in coalition with the extreme left supportive of Putin. Spain is calling for alternative leadership under the centre-right People’s Party led by Alberto Núñez Feijóo, he says. 

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson speaks to our on the ground correspondent Meabh McMahon on the sidelines of the congress in Valencia.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Greek prime minister, has closed the list of high-level speakers for this morning. His speech had a heavy focus on the economy, building on his country's reforms after the debt crisis.

"Our absolutely number one priority needs to be to restore and enhance the competitiveness of our economies," he said. "We must face the ugly truth that, in the past, we have made concessions, we have occasionally settled for less and now we risk falling behind as our competitors move ahead at speed."

"Europe must stop being a factory of new rules and start being a factory of growth," he added. "We have to pick our regulatory battles wisely."

Mitsotakis also spoke about defence and security, warning that peace in Europe can no longer "be taken for granted" and urging member states to ramp up their spending on weapons.

In a pointed remark, he asked the EU to be "careful" about striking strategic partnerships with non-EU countries, a clear reference to Turkey, with which Brussels wants to work more closely despite reservations from Greece and Cyprus.

Mitsotakis closed his speech with a reflection on EU-US relations, saying the bond was "too big to fail."

"The only way to manage this relationship on the basis of equal footing is for us to become stronger and more autonomous, and this is exactly what our agenda for the next five years needs to be," he said. "We need to approach it from a position of strength and confidence."

Andrej Plenković, the Croatian prime minister, has just taken the stage to defend the importance of EU enlargement, both in the Western Balkans and the eastern flank (Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia).

It's a fitting message: Croatia was the last country to join the EU, back in 2013.

Plenković also talked about defence, migration, competitiveness and energy security, all messages that appeal to the EPP base. He also mentioned Europe's demographic challenge and called for more affordable housing.

It's time for Ulf Kristersson, the prime minister of Sweden, who opened his speech with a bleak tone.

"We do live in an increasingly complicated world. How the war in Ukraine ends will impact our joint European security for generations to come. And the rules-based order that has been so rewarding but also taken so much for granted since the Second World War now stands on pretty shaky ground," he said.

Kristersson spoke about "decades-old" alliances under question, a reference to the tensions that Donald Trump has injected into transatlantic relations, and a pervasive feeling of "enormous uncertainty" caused by sweeping changes in trade, technology and geopolitics.

Addressing the audience, he called for a substantial and immediate increase in EU support for Ukraine.

"Their freedom is at stake, but so also is ours. A bad peace would encourage President Putin to come back for more. A bad peace would be a recipe for another assault," Kristersson said.

"The alternative should be, must be peace through strength."

Petteri Orpo, the prime minister of Finland, has just spoken extensively about security and defence, a key priority for his country, which shares a sprawling border with Russia.

"Russia is a permanent threat for the whole of Europe," he declared. "If we fail to keep our people safe from the permanent threat from Russia, nothing else matters. But I'm glad we're already on it."

Orpo said the EU's defence and security policy should become "less dependent and more independent" over the next five years, developing a diverse industry that can supply the bloc with advanced weaponry.

"This way and only this way we can ensure to have a stronger Europe," he said. "Our goal is to be so strong that no one would ever think of attacking us."

Orpo also echoed a message of deregulation, which has become very popular across EPP members. "Less regulation and more action," he declared. "We will make this work, trust me."

We've just heard again from Antonio Tajani, Italy's deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, who made a strong plea to "talk, talk, talk" with the administration of Donald Trump to strike a trade deal between the European Union and the United States.

"I'm against new tariffs; this is not good for our companies," he said. "Trade, for my country, is crucial."

Tajani said the agreement should be made between the EU and the US, not between individual member states and Washington. "We work to achieve this goal, never alone," he said.

Tajani also spoke about Russia's war on Ukraine, rejecting Vladimir Putin's three-day ceasefire and asking instead for a durable, just peace that can guarantee Ukraine's sovereignty and independence. Europeans are on edge after a leaked US proposal included sweeping concessions in favour of Russia, such as a "de iure" recognition of Crimea and "de facto" recognition of the occupied territories as Russian, as well as the lifting of sanctions imposed since 2014.

"We don't have peace without justice. Peace is not the defeat of Ukraine. We need to protect the integrity of Ukraine. We need to help our friends achieve a good agreement," he said.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the leader of the Belarusian opposition movement, who lives in exile, has just spoken at the EPP congress.

She urged the audience to "abandon illusions" that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko want peace in Europe, warning both autocrats would move further until their ambitions are stopped.

"As dictators unite, we must stay united too," Tsikhanouskaya said.

She then thanked the EPP for the assistance provided to the Belarusian opposition since the 2020 presidential election, which the EU widely decried as fraudulent and unfair.

"Yes, we are not always in the headlines. But we’re here, fighting, resisting and risking our freedom, so that one day we might share yours," she said.

Our on the ground correspondent Meabh McMahon has been picking up on much enthusiasm from congress delegates keen to see Italian premier Giorgia Meloni pull her Fratelli d’Italia party over to the EPP. As voters tilted to the right in last year's European Parliament elections, the EPP kept on terms with the more right wing groups, and particularly with members of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), which currently contains the Fratelli d’Italia and is led by Giorgia Meloni. Since then the new Parliament has witnessed several votes attesting to a so-called 'Venezuela' majority, straddling the centre right with the more right wing groups.

The EPP would doubtless like to bag Meloni’s sizeable cohort of MEPs in Brussels, but staying in the ECR gives Meloni more leverage to stand apart from the mainstream of pro-European centre-right, helping to give her more flexibility in voting positions. More importantly it helps Meloni vis-a-vis her own Italian coalition partners, who aside from the more pro-European Forza Italia remnants, include notably more Eurosceptic parties such as Lega. 

Simon Harris, the deputy prime minister of Ireland, or Tánaiste, has just taken the stage at the EPP congress to urge his fellow party members to reach out across the aisle and strengthen cooperation wth other pro-European parties.

"The EPP must now act as a bridge. We must lead, reaching out to other pro-European democratic forces," he said. "This is our moment, let's rise to the challenge."

Harris noted that "the need for a strong centrist pro-European leadership has never been greater" and described the EPP as "the voice of stability" that "doesn't merely react to events."

His words expose an internal debate within the EPP: some members prefer to stay closer to the centre, together with the liberals and socialists, while others are keen to explore ways to collaborate with far-right forces to dismantle the Green Deal and harden migration policy.

Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian prime minister, sent a short message on social media this morning to attack the EPP for supporting Ukraine against the Russian aggression.

Orbán, whose party exited the EPP a few years ago just before its expulsion became official, has repeatedly characterised financial and military support for Ukraine as a "pro-war agenda." At the same time, he has harshly criticised sanctions against Russia and threatened twice to block their renewal. His position has triggered backlash and left Hungary mostly isolated in the European Council.

Antonio Tajani, Italy's deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, has just made a brief intervention during the congress to denounce the European Green Deal, which he depicted as geared "against" the agriculture and industry sectors.

"If we want to protect jobs, if we want more jobs for the new generation, we need to change," he said. "We need a new season after the disaster of the Green Deal."

Tajani said the fight against climate change should be done "without the new religion of Greta Thunberg and Frans Timmermans," the former European Commissioner who spearheaded the legislative overhaul during the previous mandate. Timmermans, however, did so with the blessing of his boss: Ursula von der Leyen, one of the main figures in the European People's Party (EPP).

Von der Leyen's approach to climate action has caused discord among the ranks of her own party, as Tajani's scathing remarks demonstrate. Still, critics inside the EPP prefer to use the name of Timmermans, who's no longer in office, rather than von der Leyen's to attack the Green Deal.

Tajani received the loudest applause when he denounced as a "big mistake" the gradual ban of the combustion-engine car, which is set to be completed by 2035.

Welcome back to our coverage of the EPP congress in Valencia, where to no-one’s surprise Manfred Weber has been re-elected president of the party. This morning vice-presidents will be elected from a pool of candidates including Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Greek deputy prime minister Kostis Hatzidakis, Italian Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani, Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel; Austrian EU Commissioner Magnus Brunner, and MEPs Dubravka Šuica, Andrzej Halicki, David McAllister and Siegfried Mureșan; former commissioners Mairead McGuinness; former Bulgarian foreign minister Mariya Gabriel, and Flemish politician Wouter Beke.

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The first day of the EPP congress in Valencia is over.

Thank you for following our updates, this live blog will resume tomorrow to bring you all the highlights of the second day, with our reporters on the ground Méabh McMahon and Sándor Zsiros.

Manfred Weber was re-elected as European People’s Party President. Votes cast were 570, with seven invalid or blanks.

Weber, who was the only candidate for the presidency, received 502 votes, and 61 voted against.

He thanked the delegations and presented Spaniard Dolors Montserrat as candidate for next Secretary General.

Manfred Weber, the only candidate to the EPP's presidency, took the floor as last speaker.

Weber recalled the recent electoral success of the EPP in several EU and non-EU countries, like Poland and Moldova, and he desired new ones: "Alberto Núñez Feijóo will soon become the new president of Spain, congratulations!", he said.

He also praised the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as president of the European Commission and Roberta Metsola as President of the European Parliament, "two women at the helm of the European institutions".

Weber then flagged his role in enlarging the EPP group in the European Parliament. "We have grown not only because of success in national elections, but also because I convinced new parties to join us," he said recalling a mission in Hungary to strike a cooperation deal with Peter Magyar's Tisza, now the first party in Hungarian polls.

The President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola took the floor after Ursula von der Leyen.

She started by expressing, in Spanish, her solidarity with Valencians affected by the floods six months ago and by recalling her first EPP's congress in Berlin in 2001.

Then she criticized the narrative of a "too slow and bureaucratic Europe", mentioned recent simplification bills adopted by the European Parliament and reminded the room the need to keep supporting Ukraine, not out of altruism, but for Europe's security.

"Nothing on Ukraine without Ukraine," she said on peace negotiations.

"Far right and far left are not pro-peace, they are pro-Putin," said Ursula von der Leyen, doubling down on EU support for Ukraine against Russia's invasion.

"Our message to Ukraine is clear: your freedom is our freedom, your security is our security. And your future is in our Union."

"We have done more for European defence in a single year than in several decades," said Ursula von der Leyen, recalling the plan to mobilize up to €800 billion in investment for common defence and new defence partnerships with Norway and, soon, the United Kingdom.

"In every crisis there is also an opportunity," said Ursula von der Leyen referring to the tariff crisis and highlighting that Europe's Single Market is the largest in the world and "the champion in export to GDP".

"Now the world of trade is turning towards us. Since last year, we have concluded a new wave of trade deals, from Mercosur to Mexico to Switzerland," she said, recalling that the European Union has the largest network of free trade agreements, with 76 countries around the world. "We are working with India and Indonesia, with the Emirates and Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia, and the Pacific. They all want to deal with us. Because we are fair, reliable and we play by the rules," she said.

"Other parties talk about gender balance. We deliver on it," von der Leyen said referring to the choice of Spaniard Dolors Montserrat as the first woman Secretary-General of the EPP.

"EPP means leadership and And we will deliver for Europe at all levels," she said to applause.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, has taken the floor dedicating her first words to the blackout that happened in Spain and Portugal yesterday.

"Yesterday, citizens across Spain and Portugal and parts of France faced an unprecedented power outage.

 I would like to commend them for the calm and the civility that they have displayed in the midst of this most challenging blackout," she said.

Von der Leyen said "they have shown collective responsibility and solidarity with the people that suddenly found themselves unable to go home. And let me thank in particular the police, the firefighters, the traffic controllers."

"We will continue to work to build a better Spain and a better Europe," said Alberto Núñez Feijóo, President of the Spanish Partido Popular.

He was presented as "next president of Spain" and received a long standing ovation from the hall, Méabh McMahon reports from the ground.

"Are we out of minds?" quipped Merz, referring to the burden posed on European business and citizens by some EU legislation.

He referred to the possibility that a roadworthiness test must be performed on every car older than ten years registered in Germany every year, instead that every two years, as it is the case now.

"We should not lose the popular pro-European vote by approving these kind of measures," he said.

Merz also suggested additional measures to curb irregular migration if the numbers of arrivals remain high (indeed irregular crossing have decreased by 38% in the last year, according to Frontex).

Merz insisted on the need to ramp up defence production and joint procurement of weapons for European countries.

"We Europeans must be able to defend ourselves better than in the past. This is not optional, this is a precondition to preserve peace and freedom in our continent," he said, to applause.

He stressed that his Christian-Democrat party will hold the foreign office in the new German government.

Applauded from the hall, the German chancellor in waiting Friedrich Merz explained that his government is coming soon.

"The German socialist party is voting on the programme today: I hope we can have an approval tomorrow morning and a new government by next week," said Merz.

Merz also endorsed his fellow nationals Manfred Weber as EPP President and David McAllister as vice-president.

"In times like these, our People's Party is needed more than ever," said Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker, recalling that "extremes are on the rise in politics", in Austria, in Europe, and elsewhere in the world.

Stocker, who struck a coalition agreement with Austrian socialists to form his government, said he believes in further integration EU countries. to face the "enormous challenge" that lie ahead.

He received a smattering of applause when he said: "We must stop illegal immigration once for all", and more wholehearted approval when he stated that "a strong Germany is important for a strong Europe".

"Future at Stake: How to shape demography and balance a fair life in Europe?" is the title of the third panel of the EPP congress. Guests are Sofia Zacharaki, minister of Education of Greece, Gudrun Kugler, The President of the EPP group in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Francesco Sismondini, chair of European Democrat Students, former Belgian MEP Stefaan Vercamer and Rozália Biró, president of the Women of the European People's Party.

After the non-EU national leaders and deputies, it is now the turn of opposition and party leaders from the EU countries to take the floor: Estonia's Urmas Reinsalu, Lithuania's Laurynas Kasčiūnas, Slovenia's former Prime minister Janez Janša, Cyprus' Annita Demetriou, Malta's Bernard Grech, The Netherlands' Henri Bontenbal, France's François-Xavier Bellamy (who is also EPP's treasurer) and Bulgaria's Bojko Borisov.

Another round of intervention has started in Valencia.

The first to speak is Ervin Ibrahimović, deputy Prime minister of Montenegro. Then it's the turn of Borjana Krišto, Chairwomen of the Council of Ministers in Bosnia and Herzegovina. After her, Hristijan Mickoski, Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Nizar Baraka, party leader, in Morocco, and Maia Sandu, President of Moldova.

"Russia's objective has not changed. It wants to convert our country into a corridor of influence, to be used against Ukraine", said Maia Sandu, the President of Moldova, claiming that the Kremlin will try to derail the next parliamentary election in the country, scheduled for September 2025.

She added that her country has "made a choice" to stay by Europe, and called for the accession to the EU of Moldova, Ukraine and the Western Balkans countries.

Picture: AP

"Enhance Europe's Competitiveness: Securing Economic Growth and Creating Ǫuality Jobs" is the title of the second panel of the EPP congress in Valencia.

In this case, guests are the Swedish member of the European Parliament Jörgen Warborn, Sari Rautio, president of the EPP group in European Committee of the Regions, German member of the European Parliament Dennis Radtke and Portuguese member of the European Parliament Lídia Pereira.

Valencia, the Spanish city that hosts the EPP congress, was hit six months ago by the "Dana" or “cold drop”, an atmospheric phenomenon that brought torrential rain killing more than 200 people and damaging thousands of homes and businesses.

Read Méabh Mc Mahon' reportage on how Valencians feel six months on from floods here.

The first panel of the EPP's congress has started, titled: "United for Defence: Strengthening Democracy and Europe’s Future". Guests are Polish member of the Parliament Michał Szczerba, Theodoros Rousopoulos, Greek MP and President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Ivan Krulko, member of the Ukrainian Parliament and Mikuláš Dzurinda, former head of government of Slovakia.

It is now the turn for members of the EPP's presidency to take the floor. Among them are some current and former European Commissioners, like Dubravka Šuica, Croatian Commissioner responsible for the Mediterranean.

"We are not only an aging society, we are the society of longevity," she said, recalling the level of welfare and wellbeing reached within the European Union.

"More flexibility in the EU budget is needed," said Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Budget and Administration during the previous legislature.

The French member of the European Parliament François-Xavier Bellamy has been confirmed as treasurer of the European People's Party. The vote was held by raise of hands, with no delegates against its confirmation.

Bellamy's new mandate will end on 30 April 2025.

European People's Party's delegates can now cast their vote to elect the new EPP President up until 17.30, while Secretary General Thanasis Bakolas is currently speaking.

After strong calls by Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko for maintained support for Ukraine, the floor goes to other conservative leaders from non-EU countries: Lumir Abdixhiku from Kosovo, Tina Bouchava from Georgia, Gian Carlo Venturini from San Marino and Sali Berisha from Albania.

Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko took the stage speaking in her native language. "Ukrainian soldiers are freedom fighters who are not only defending our cities, but also Paris and Berlin, Madrid and Valencia: Europe's security and the security of Ukraine are indivisible", she said.

Tymoshenko also wished Ukraine's accession to the EU well before 2030, ideally in 2026.

Speaking from the podium of the EPP's congress, former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko said that Crimea is and should remain part of Ukraine. He also called on the EU to open the first chapter of negotiations for Ukraine's accession to the EU.

After González Pons's opening speech, it's the turn of EPP's leaders coming from non-EU countries.

The first intervention is for Erna Solberg, leader of Norwegian Conservative Party. After her, Ukrainians Petro Poroshenko, Yulia Tymoshenko and Vitali Klitschko are set to speak.

“Last 24 hours have been difficult for Spain, and for Portugal,” said Esteban González Pons, referring to the recent blackout that affected the Iberian peninsula, with chaotic scenes in Spanish cities, as traffic was disrupted, thousands were stuck in metro tunnels, businesses shut down, and people were unable to make calls on mobile networks or pay without cash.

You can follow all the developments of sweeping power outage in our liveblog here.

Around 900 delegates are taking part to the EPP congress, while 400 others could not come for a range of reasons, Méabh McMahon reports from the ground.

Before the starting of the congress, a minute of silence has been observed to honour Pope Francis, who passed away on April 21. After the minute of silence, delegates applauded rigorously.

Outside the Feria Valencia, the congress' venue, dozens of people are demonstrating asking for the resignation of Carlos Mazón, the president of Valencia's region (Comunidad Valenciana), who is also a member of the EPP.

Mazón is widely criticized for having mismanaged the response to the DANA, the atmospheric phenomenon which on 29 October 2024 brought torrential rain and a year's worth of precipitation in the Spanish city.

The EPP congress in Valencia has started with an opening speech by Spanish Esteban González Pons, vice-President of the party and vice-President of the European Parliament.

He has opened proceedings, standing in for Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the president of the Partido Popular, the Spanish branch of the EPP.