EU’s top diplomat demands answers from von der Leyen on embassy cuts plan
Kaja Kallas was asked by lawmakers about a plan first seen by POLITICO to cut staffing at EU embassies around the world.
Five days into her new job, Kaja Kallas is already demanding answers from her boss.
During a Thursday hearing in the European Parliament on the EU’s foreign policy arm, known as the European External Action Service (EEAS), the freshly appointed Kaja Kallas told lawmakers it hadn’t been her decision to downsize staff at EU embassies after POLITICO first reported on the prospect as laid out by the EEAS.
The planned cuts come as the EEAS faces budget constraints and a burgeoning staff of some 8,000 worldwide along with ongoing inflation.
“I don’t know whose plan it is, but it’s not my plan,” said Kallas, who is the top authority inside the EEAS and is responsible for its operations.
Kallas said she had talked to her boss, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen and the two “tried to, you know, look into … where is it coming from.”
“The president [has] exchanges with [the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs] and the other members of [the] College all the time,” said the Commission’s chief spokesperson, Paula Pinho, when asked about the conversation.
Von der Leyen has centralized her grip on the European Union’s institutions and policy-making amid a power vacuum due to the weakness of national governments in Germany and France, while keeping a close eye on her newly-installed team.
According to a document first reported by POLITICO, the European Commission is considering cutting the number of people working at many of its embassies dramatically, and instead building out staffing in countries where the bloc has a strategic interest. Some officials worry this could lead to a loss of EU diplomatic heft in Africa and Latin America in particular.
Despite a small increase in the budget for 2025, the cash allocated for the foreign policy arm “leaves us with a significant hole, and we will have to continue with our strict austerity measures,” Kallas acknowledged, although she shied away from agreeing with the EEAS plan to cut people.
“In this geopolitical situation, we need more Europe, not less, not closing the delegations. I’m not saying it’s a bad idea, but I’m saying that we need to do the analysis, because there are so many consequences that might come with this.”
During the hearing, Kallas also begged lawmakers not to summon her to a debate during the Parliament, as the Socialists and Democrats had requested.
“As I’m in [my] fifth day in office, I asked [for] the analysis and … please don’t call me to the plenary to talk about something that I don’t know and [am] not responsible for,” she said.
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