Good morning from Brussels, 

EU leaders did not manage at an informal dinner on Monday to reach a previously widely expected “quick deal” on EU top jobs, limiting themselves to a “good conversation”, according to EU Council chief Charles Michel. 

The package under discussion was to renominate incumbent EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for a second term and appoint Portugal’s António Costa as European Council president and Estonia’s Kaja Kallas as foreign policy chief. 

While the objective to find a compromise by the end of the month – before the French parliamentary elections - remains, diplomatic sources confirmed to Euractiv that the deal did not get stuck on the names but on the policies’ package for the next five years. 

Particularly, candidates were asked to present more detailed plans of what they would do in their potential roles. 

On a political level, there was another hurdle: the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), the winner of the EU elections, wanted to nominate a centre-right politician for the second half of the five-year term of the European Council post, a deviation from the tradition of the nominee serving two consecutive mandates, meaning the Socialists would only serve one term.

Moreover, before the dinner, several leaders, mainly from the EPP, expressed reservations about Costa’s candidacy because of the latter’s embroilment in an ongoing corruption probe back home, although he has not been formally charged with any crime.

Last but not least, despite their gains in the EU elections, far-right and hard-right conservatives, such as Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, are not officially considered in the top-job discussion.  

“The will of the European people was ignored today in Brussels”, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said after the summit.

EU leaders will now reconvene in Brussels on June 27-28. 

Aurélie Pugnet, Max Griera and Alexandra Brzozowski have the story.

Euractiv was also informed today in the morning that at the EPP pre-summit, the EU centre-right leaders adopted an approach of “minimum concessions” with many saying that the EPP won the elections and was the only pro-EU force that increased its political strength after the elections.

In addition, sources said that at the meeting some raised the issue of Costa’s poor English skills, but others pointed out that it was also the case for Tusk – who was present – when he took over the EU Council presidency. EPP leaders also said they wanted to hear more from Kallas regarding foreign policy matters other than just Russia and Ukraine.

The European  Commission said it was “not worried” by Beijing’s announcement on Monday of an anti-dumping investigation into the bloc’s pork exports, in an escalation of trade tensions with the bloc. Maria Simon Arboleas has more.

In addition, EU environment ministers who gathered in Luxembourg on Monday distanced themselves from the EU Parliament on food waste targets while they pushed for more flexibility in the first EU law monitoring soil. Yet, they adopted their first formal position on the Green Claims Directive, with environmental NGOs arguing that the text had been watered down. 

Last but not least, Jonathan Packroff reports that while many economists have long advocated introducing a ‘climate dividend’ to avoid social tensions caused by carbon pricing, a group around Nobel-prize winner Joseph Stiglitz questioned this approach in a paper released on Monday in Nature Climate Change.

VIENNA

Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP/EPP) opted against dissolving the government after Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) voted in favour of the EU nature restoration law despite his party’s rejection of the initiative. Read more.

LONDON

Tactical voting tool aimed at defeating Tories, Farrage goes live ahead of UK vote. The GetVoting.org initiative, spearheaded by Best for Britain activist organisation, launched a tool on Monday to show British voters how best to defeat the ruling Conservatives and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party. Read more.

STOCKHOLM

Swedish opposition concerned as military deal with US reaches parliament. As the Swedish parliament is expected to vote on a defence cooperation agreement that will give the US access to several Swedish military bases, the opposition and civil society have expressed concern about the deal’s vague wording on nuclear weapons that could be hosted on Swedish soil. Read more.

ROME

European Commission spokesperson Eric Mamer condemned on Monday the use of fascist symbolism, but he avoided mentioning the ongoing investigation into the youth movement of the hard-right party Fratelli d’Italia of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a likely ally to Ursula von der Leyen in her quest to for a second term as Commission president. Read more.

Migrant shipwrecks off Italy leave 11 dead, more than 60 missing. Eleven people died and more than 60 were missing, including 26 children, following two migrant shipwrecks off Italy’s southern shores, aid groups, coastguard officials and UN agencies said on Monday. Read more.

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MADRID

Puigdemont accuses Le Pen of being VOX’s ‘puppet’. Former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, leader of the right-wing separatist JxCat party, accused Rassemblement National figurehead Marine Le Pen of acting as a “puppet of the Francoists” of Spain’s far-right VOX party, reacting to an interview where she put into doubt his stay in the south of France. Read more.

Spain lags behind rest of EU in granting asylum, says NGO. Spain granted asylum to 12% of applicants last year, the lowest rate among EU countries, putting the country 30 points below the EU average and at the bottom of the table in terms of the rate of asylum granted, a report by the Spanish NGO Commission for Refugee Aid (CEAR) warned on Monday. Read more.

LEAK: Spain to ask member states for medical aid with Gaza patients. Spain will urge EU health ministers to support the transfer of patients in need of urgent medical care from Gaza to EU countries willing to offer their healthcare services, according to a leaked document seen by Euractiv. Read more.

SOFIA

Borissov’s GERB will name Bulgaria’s next key officials. Former prime minister and centre-right GERB leader Boyko Borissov, whose party won the latest elections, will be allowed to name key officials, although his party will have to govern in coalition with two other parties. Read more.

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BELGRADE

Despite protests, Serbia readies to mine lithium as early as 2028. President Aleksandar Vučić said Serbia could exploit lithium as early as 2028 following new guarantees from Australian mining giant Rio Tinto and the EU over the controversial project, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Read more.

• EU: General Affairs Council convenes to discuss cohesion policy, EU strategic agenda 2024-2029, and more;
• Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council expected to address maritime safety and inland waterways, road safety, railway infrastructure capacity, and more;
• High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell receives EU-LAC (Latin America and Caribbean) Foundation Board members;
• Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič co-chairs 5th EU-China High Level Dialogue on Environment and Climate;
• Vice President Vĕra Jourová speaks at the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD) annual conference;
• Vice President Margaritis Schinas participates in peace and sustainable growth international conference organised by the Alexis Tsipras Institute and the Zoran Zaev Foundation;
• Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni delivers opening keynote speech at high level conference “On track to 2030? Delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals in the EU”, co-organised by the Commission and the Belgian Presidency;
• Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson delivers keynote speech at “EU Network of Coordinators, National Rapporteurs and Equivalent Mechanison trafficking in human beings” meeting;
• Financial services, financial stability and Capital Markets Union Commissioner Mairead McGuinness meets with ECB President Christine Lagarde, in Frankfurt, Germany; Delivers keynote speech at “European Financial Integration 2024” conference, co-organised by the Commission and ECB; Visits European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA);
• Budget and Administration Commissioner Johannes Hahn delivers speech at “Global Borrowers & Bond Investors Forum”, in London, United Kingdom;

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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Liene Lūsīte, Alice Taylor]