EU foreign ministers will start discussing the issue early September in the Irish east coast city of Wicklow.
The French discussion paper, described by officials and diplomats as a very early-stage document aimed at laying out scenarios, sets out options for reforming the EU’s foreign policy architecture.
It argues that the bloc’s external policy tools “are not necessarily used in an optimal way” and calls for strengthening the role of the Council ― which represents the capitals ― in their governance. The two-page document, first reported by the Financial Times, outlines three possible models: giving greater powers to the Commission, shifting the EEAS closer to the Council, or strengthening both institutions simultaneously.
Under the third option, Kallas would be significantly empowered within the Commission. She would become first executive vice-president, with authority over commissioners and directorates-general responsible for areas including foreign affairs, trade and development.
According to the paper, such a model, which is Paris’ preferred option according to diplomats and analysts, could also prove acceptable to the Commission — though that still could be tricky given the notoriously difficult relationship between Kallas and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
‘Inside the Commission’
The French do not want to give more powers to von der Leyen, said Guillaume Duval, a speechwriter for Kallas’ predecessor Borrell, who is now at the Jacques Delors Institute, a think tank, in Paris.