An important portfolio for Finland could be the task of the commissioner responsible for competitiveness.
The Prime Minister’s Party coalition must soon appoint Finland’s next EU commissioner.
According to STT’s information, the coalition’s condition is that the commissioner candidate must be a candidate in the European elections. None of the coalition’s current ministers has shown interest in participating in the elections.
In this light, it would not be a surprise if the Prime Minister Petteri Orpon (collective) election as a commissioner should aim for the third term of the European Parliament Henna Virkkunen.
Virkkunen himself tells STT that he could consider the task.
– The commissioner’s job is a very important job. I am personally interested in tasks where I can influence the future of the EU. If such a question comes up, then of course it must be seriously considered.
Virkkunen says that he does not want to speculate on which portfolio would be particularly interesting. Instead, he wants to think about what would be a useful portfolio for Finland.
– From Finland’s point of view, I think the important things would be the EU’s strategic competitiveness, improving Europe’s overall security and, thirdly, speeding up the clean transition.
In the upcoming EU period, strengthening overall security and the economy is key, he says.
– It involves military preparation, but also securing critical infrastructure and preparation for hybrid operations, such as instrumented immigration.
The EU will vote on the immigration package that has been prepared for years before the end of the parliamentary term. The package includes, among other things, the border procedure, screening regulation and crisis clauses, so it offers means to combat instrumentalized immigration.
– But does it offer enough? It will have to be evaluated if the phenomenon expands significantly, says Virkkunen.
Far-right and EU-critical parties are on the rise in Europe. Speaker of the Parliament Roberta Metsola has called on pro-EU parties to cooperate more closely in the next term.
– The Gallup polls show that EU-critical parties are successful, but the largest majority in the parliament will still be pro-EU forces, says Virkkunen.
Among the parties critical of the EU, there are also parties that have a positive attitude towards Russia. Virkkunen still does not believe that the parliament’s support for Ukraine will waver.
– We still have “Putin’s friends” in parliament, both in far-right and left-wing groups. However, the overwhelming majority strongly supports Ukraine.