Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs, is facing an internal power struggle in Brussels over who controls the bloc’s international policy and diplomacy. According to reports from The Irish Times and Euractiv, Kallas has found herself sidelined by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who has increasingly centralized foreign and defense policy authority within her office in the Berlaymont headquarters.
Institutional Rivalry and the Battle for Competence
The high representative is tasked with speaking for the 27-member bloc on the international stage, backed by foreign ministers and the European Commission. However, structural overlap has created friction between Kallas’s European External Action Service (EEAS) and von der Leyen’s executive office. Von der Leyen has absorbed broader responsibilities regarding security strategy, defense spending, and geopolitical agenda-setting, leaving the diplomatic service dependent on an expanding commission apparatus.
National capitals have also contributed to the policy paralysis. Kallas has faced embarrassing policy climbdowns after floating proposals—such as a €40 billion war chest for Ukraine funded by national contributions or a specialized defense gap advisory group—without first securing the unanimous backing of EU foreign ministers. Diplomats cited in Brussels noted that major foreign policy decisions require unanimous agreement among all 27 member states, giving individual governments significant leverage to block initiatives.
Policy Disconnects on Ukraine and the Middle East
The internal discord has directly impacted the EU’s external efficacy. Reporting from The Irish Times highlights that the union has been sidelined in United States-led negotiations regarding the war in Ukraine. Furthermore, the bloc has struggled to utilize its considerable economic and trade leverage to influence events in Gaza and the West Bank.
Internal divisions among member states—with countries such as Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, and Italy resisting stronger measures against Israel—have prevented Brussels from establishing a cohesive stance on sanctions or trade restrictions related to the conflict.
Calls for Reform from Member States
The ongoing dysfunction has prompted governments like France and Germany to demand a structural review of the EU’s foreign policy machinery. A joint working paper produced by Paris and Berlin has proposed integrating the EEAS more closely into the European Commission to streamline decision-making. However, former diplomats warn that shifting administrative locations will not resolve the underlying barrier of the unanimity voting requirement, which continues to restrict swift collective action across international crises.
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