EU lawmakers have accused the Commission president of inconsistency in foreign policy and failing to curb soaring energy costs
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has come under fire again in the European Parliament, as lawmakers are accusing her of double standards in foreign policy and failing to shield EU citizens from soaring energy costs.
MEPs from multiple factions voiced their frustration during Wednesday’s debate on EU strategy for the Middle East and energy security, pointing to what they described as a lack of clear direction and coherence in the bloc’s response.
Belgian lawmaker Kathleen Van Brempt questioned the bloc’s credibility, which she said was being undermined by Brussels’ “double standards in our foreign policy” – imposing sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine conflict while staying “silent” over Israel’s actions in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon.
Italian MEP Roberto Vannacci likened the EU’s inactive policy on the Middle East to “cockroaches that freeze and play dead when the predator arrives,” arguing that if the EC had “applied lockdown to itself” instead of to member states, Europeans would have been spared “a lot of damage and a lot of pain.”
Portuguese MEP Joao Oliveira accused von der Leyen of “staying quiet because of pressure” from US President Donald Trump. “Von der Leyen doesn’t say a word to condemn the aggression against Iran and Israel’s actions, the invasion of Lebanon, the killing of Lebanese people and more than 1.2 million displaced in Lebanon,” he said.
Oliveira also accused Brussels of backing a policy “under the leadership and guidance of multinationals,” saying “We must put an end to the neoliberal control of the energy sector,” and argued that “not one measure has been taken to control prices and to support farmers.”
Austrian Green MEP Thomas Waitz said the EU remained trapped in recurring dependency cycles, warning that shifting reliance between external suppliers amounted to “a dead-end street” rather than a long-term solution. “It’s bad for the economy, it’s bad for people, it’s bad for energy prices,” he argued.
Polish MEP Grzegorz Braun, who has repeatedly said that Brussels’ policies are dragging the bloc into a war, used highly charged language, dubbing von der Leyen “Madame Reichsführerin,” a reference to Nazi-era ranks. He argued that the energy crisis was not temporary but the result of “deeply wrong decisions.”
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