Kaja Kallas defends her institution after a proposal from France to reform the EU's External Action Service
She was responding to a French government document that proposed radical options for the EEAS, including putting it under the full control of the European Commission, Politico and Reuters write.
The head of the EU's External Action Service, Kaja Kallas, has defended her institution at a time when it faces proposals to abolish it.
In an email cited by Politico, Kallas wrote to the 5,000 staff of the European External Action Service, insisting that he “brought added value” to the bloc.
She thus responded to a French government document that proposed radical options for the EEAS, including placing it under the full control of the European Commission.
“I would like to emphasize how much added value we have brought to Europe as a team, especially at a time when a full-scale war is wreaking havoc in Europe,” Kallas said in his email.
The French document, the content of which was originally published by Reuters and the Financial Times, follows earlier criticism from national capitals and EU officials, who complain that EU diplomacy is too slow, institutionally dysfunctional and the victim of an intensifying power struggle between the EEAS and the European Commission led by President Ursula von der Leyen.
The document is internal, not approved by the French foreign minister or his collaborators, and does not reflect an official French position, an EU diplomat said.
The document outlines three options for reforming the EEAS, including bringing it fully under the authority of the Commission, transferring its key functions to the Council of the EU and strengthening the role of the post held by Kallas.
In a speech earlier this year, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the EU needed a stronger diplomatic service.
Issues within the EEAS have been the subject of “daily discussions” between ambassadors and should be seen as a “wake-up call” to Kallas about how he is running the institution, an EU diplomat familiar with the discussions said, as quoted by Politico.
In her email, Kallas, a former Estonian prime minister and EU foreign policy chief from 2024, said she welcomed a debate on the reform.
“The relationship between the EEAS, the Commission and the Member States has been the subject of discussion since the establishment of the Service,” she wrote.
“Given the unprecedented geopolitical challenges we face, it's only natural that these discussions should attract more attention and gain more intensity.”
I welcome this debate because it reflects a shared commitment to one goal: ensuring that our institutions and tools have the greatest possible impact on our citizens,” she added.
