Good morning from Brussels, 

Donald Trump’s decision to pick Republican Senator JD Vance as his vice-presidential running mate for his White House bid has raised eyebrows in Europe as he is known for his support for isolationist foreign policies.

Notably, EU diplomats expect him to support a hawkish China policy, pushing Europeans even further down their confrontational path with Beijing, which has been marked by tit-for-tat probes into trade barriers over products including electric vehicles, pork, and brandy 

In addition, Brussels is worried about Vance’s vocal opposition to US aid for Ukraine. When the US Congress held up a $60 billion military aid package, Vance played a key role in arguing to kill the bill.

Read the story here.

Meanwhile, Ursula von der Leyen’s meeting with the EU Left on Monday ahead of a crucial vote on Thursday in Strasbourg about her reelection as the European Commission’s president took place in a “negative atmosphere”, two EU lawmakers from the group told Euractiv.  

The EU Left currently has 46 votes and is expected to vote against von der Leyen. 

According to the MEPs, von der Leyen was asked whether the EU has a backup plan to address Russia’s aggression in case of a US change of policy in Ukraine after the November elections, but did not receive an answer.

But Europe has headaches about the future Ukraine policy at home too with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s – whose country holds the EU rotating presidency - diplomacy unilateralism. 

In protest, the EU executive asked its Commissioners on Monday not to attend informal ministerial meetings during the Hungarian EU presidency.

On a policy level, ministers from agricultural powerhouses Spain and Germany spoke out against Hungary’s stance on “novel foods” at the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) in Brussels on Monday.

Eurozone countries may have to cut net government spending by more than previously anticipated next year to comply with new EU fiscal rules, finance ministers from the 20-member states group said on Monday. Thomas Moller-Nielsen has the story.

Outgoing EU Cohesion Commissioner Elisa Ferreira clashed with German Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP/Renew) on Monday after he suggested that cohesion policy might be “overfunded” due to its “sluggish” absorption rate. Read more.

BERLIN

Germany will not provide fighter jets to Ukraine, the government made clear on Monday after Friedrich Merz, leader of the main opposition party, suggested as much. Read more.

TALLINN

Estonia’s Kaja Kallas resigned ahead of Brussels top-job. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform party, Renew) submitted her resignation to Estonian President Alar Karis on Monday (15 July) after being nominated as the EU’s next top diplomat. Read more.

MADRID

The Spanish government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (PSOE/S&D) should declare a state of “migratory emergency” in the whole of Spain and not just in the Canary Islands – the region currently hardest hit by the influx of irregular migrants from West Africa – the main opposition centre-right Partido Popular (PP/EPP) said on Monday. Read more.

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ROME

Italian opposition unites against naming airport after Berlusconi. Opposition parties in Italy are up in arms over the decision to rename one of the country’s most famous airports, Milan Malpensa, after late former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. Read more.

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LISBON

Portugal’s foreign minister: Europe and Africa must join forces to counter Indo-Pacific rise. Europe and Africa will only be relevant on the international stage if they join forces to balance the rising influence of the Indo-Pacific region, Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel said on Monday. Read more.

WARSAW

NATO’s Stoltenberg opposes Poland shooting down missiles over Ukraine’s skies. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg opposed the idea that Poland could shoot down Russian missiles over Ukrainian regions close to the Polish border, as requested by Kyiv. Read more.

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PRAGUE

Re-elected Czech MEP turns down second term in EU Parliament. In a surprise move, recently re-elected Czech MEP Martin Hlaváček (ANO, PfE) announced Monday that he would not seek a second term in the European Parliament. Read more.

SOFIA

Commissioner warns Bulgaria could lose recovery plan funds.  There is a real risk that Bulgaria will lose money under the EU Recovery Plan, Bulgarian Commissioner Iliana Ivanova said in an interview with bTV on Monday, citing the lack of a stable government. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Romania triples bear culling after fatal attack on young woman. Romanian MPs approved a law to manage the country’s bear population in Monday’s extraordinary session, agreeing to triple the annual culling quota after one killed a young woman in the Carpathian Mountains last week. Read more.

• EU: Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council convenes to discuss labour and skills shortages, persons with disabilities inclusion, and more;
• Economic and Financial Affairs Council expected to focus on Recovery and Resilience Facility. stability and growth pact, work programme of the Hungarian presidency, and more;
• Parliament holds plenary session in Strasbourg, France;
• Commission Vice President Vĕra Jourová holds video conference with Executive Director of Europol Catherine De Bolle;
• Neighbourhood and Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi meets with Minister of European Integration of Serbia Tanja Miščević;

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