EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss policy goals for the next five years, including defense and economic issues, as well as how to appoint senior EU positions.
This informal meeting will be the leaders' first gathering after the European Parliament elections, which were favorable for center-right and right-wing nationalists but humiliating for French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The leaders will discuss who should be the next presidents of the European Commission and the European Council, as well as the chief of foreign policy, though they seem to have already reached consensus.
Germany's Ursula von der Leyen is expected to be reappointed to head the EU's executive body, after her center-right European People's Party performed well in the elections.
Among the 27 EU leaders, 13 belong to parties affiliated with the European People's Party. With the support of France and Germany, she will achieve the necessary qualified majority nomination.
France had previously considered alternatives to von der Leyen, but with Macron announcing a snap parliamentary election on June 30, the government now leans toward stability within the EU.
Former Portuguese Prime Minister Alberto Costa is expected to become the next president of the European Council, meaning he will chair the socialist summit starting in December.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, a liberal, is likely to be nominated as the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, ensuring geographic and political balance in the distribution of EU positions.
Leaders are expected to confirm their choices at the EU summit on June 27-28. Von der Leyen will then need to gain the support of the European Parliament, which will vote at its first meeting on July 16.
