Charles Michel announced this last week after the European Parliament elections He will leave the post of the head of the European Council. If EU leaders do not choose a successor, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will become interim president of the European Council from mid-July as Hungary leads the EU in the second half of this year. .
Michel is going to participate in the June elections of the European Parliament.
One source cited by the foreign media indicated that the leaders were “not thrilled” when they learned of Michel's decision with the media. – Charles Michel has upset many European leaders by announcing his plan to run in June's European Council elections, an insider says.
Only Macron knew
Sources in Brussels suggest that only Belgium's close ally, French President Emmanuel Macron, was informed of the European Council president's intentions.
EU leaders are 'furious' at Charles Michel's decision to quit. Belgium's former prime minister announced Tuesday that he will run for office after four years in a key EU post. Accordingly, he will leave the post of President of the European Council in July, despite the fact that his term was supposed to be extended until November.
An EU official close to Michel told Politico that all the leaders of the bloc's member states were informed of his decision “in time to avoid leaks” — some directly by him, others indirectly. “However, there appears to be clear anger as another EU official claims Michel actually discussed the situation with Macron and only sent an email to others, leaving them all stunned,” reports the Daily Express.
– The member states were not consulted beforehand about Michel's decision – says an anonymous official from Brussels. – Of course, the capitals were not happy to be informed along with the information spread in the media, – he adds.
(Translate tags) Charles Michel