This is why the ÖVP delegates will not accept the EVP program. There are “many good suggestions and important points in the manifesto”, said Stocker, but there are points that the ÖVP cannot agree with. Specifically, this is a necessary consent for nuclear energy, the expansion of Schengen and the abolition of the principle of unanimity in common foreign and security policy.
“We also have clear positions and a clear attitude as a popular party in Europe, we support them and we cannot deviate from them,” said Stocker. Austria could not agree to nuclear energy. The Secretary General of the ÖVP also takes little advantage of the demanded inclusion of Romania and Bulgaria in the Schengen area: “The Schengen system is broken. We have to fix the system, not sugarcoat it.”
Nehammer's speech on Thursday
Stocker positively assessed that some demands of the ÖVP in the fight against illegal migration were included in the concept of a safe third country. ÖVP chief Karl Nehammer had already made people sit up and pay attention at the EVP congress in June 2022 with tough tones on migration policy. Taking into account the war in Ukraine, this issue should not be forgotten. Problems such as illegal migration, terrorism and organized crime “continue to exist”.
Nehammer will speak in Bucharest on Thursday. Reinhold Lopatka, the ÖVP's main candidate for the EU elections, will also arrive on the second day. European Minister Karoline Edtstadler and EU MEPs Othmar Karas and Christian Sagartz (all ÖVP) will be at the EPP congress on Wednesday. Commissioner Johannes Hahn, also Vice-President of the EPP, also participates. A total of twelve acting EPP heads of government, several opposition politicians and the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, are expected.
von der Leyen's ÖVP: “No other plans at the moment”
The election manifesto, which consists of the two pillars of prosperity and security, will be adopted on Wednesday by around 2,000 delegates from 44 countries. Due to the shift to the right that was evident in polls carried out in the EU elections in June, parts of the EPP also want to position themselves significantly further to the right. According to EPP leader Manfred Weber, the focus is on strengthening competitiveness and the economy, as well as ensuring peace and strengthening Europe's military power.
AP/Andreea Alexandru EPP leader Manfred Weber wants to vote on the electoral program on Wednesday
In the election as the main candidate, von der Leyen is the only candidate who can expect clear approval. The ÖVP also wants to support the current President of the Commission. “Yes, we have no other plan at the moment,” Nehammer said recently.
Criticism of climate policy
The French party Les Republicains (LR) was already more negative in advance. Von der Leyen's balance sheet does not correspond to what Europe expects today. LR's main candidate, François Xavier-Bellamy, referred to the EU renaturation law, which is a fundamental pillar of the “Green Deal” initiated by the President of the Commission, but which there is widespread rejection within the EPP.
Nehammer also criticized climate policy during von der Leyen's tenure. Recently, however, it “sent important signals regarding the internal combustion engine.” Von der Leyen now wants the ban on new cars planned from 2035 to be examined.