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Von der Leyen delivers State of the Union set-piece

The bloc chief faces rising political opposition and increasing isolation abroad but has focused on security, militarization, AI, and addictive technology

Published 16 Sep, 2026 07:00 | Updated 16 Sep, 2026 09:04

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is making her State of the Union address to the EU Parliament in Strasbourg.

The speech is expected to touch on issues including the Ukraine conflict, the Middle East crisis, AI, climate change, and online protection for children.

Reports claim that von der Leyen could also propose a ‘European Security Council’ that would include not just EU member states, but also Ukraine and Canada.

16 September 2026
09:00 GMT
Valerie Hayer of Renew Europe calls for pro-European radicalism, accusing Italian PM Giorgia Meloni of hypocrisy.
08:56 GMT
Patryk Jaki of the European Conservatives and Reformists takes a six-year look at von der Leyen’s record, from 2020.

“According to data from 19 European countries, more than €4 billion was wasted on vaccines. In Poland, money spent on swingers clubs, tanning beds and pizzerias. In 2020, you promised less bureaucracy, now new recruitment for more EU staff has been announced.”
Jaki claims von der Leyen “managed to tighten bottlecaps and turn Europeans into involuntary rubbish collectors,” a clear snipe at the EU’s overbearing recycling initiatives, before accusing her of censoring the internet and claiming children need truth online.
08:55 GMT
“We’re regulating things we no longer produce and taxing things we no longer know how to make,” Bardella says. “We need a new European architecture... Let’s get rid of red tape, protect our farmers from unfair competition. Let’s free ourselves from the aggressive ideology of de-growth. The 21st century reminds us of a truth Europe has forgotten – a people that cannot defend its borders, produce its energy, and feed its children leaves its destiny to others. Today in Brussels the time has come to change things.
08:52 GMT
French MEP Jordan Bardella – president of the National Rally party – has torn into von der Leyen following her speech. “Every year we hear you glorifying what you’ve done and every year we hear Europe is about to be relaunched,” he says.
“In 2026, we have the Europe of those who write the rules, bureaucrats who waste public money, increase salaries by 49% and private jets by 59%. And then there’s the second Europe who have to pay for this, pay for petrol and heating that has risen by 50%. That is the state of the union,” Bardella says.
Bardella is scathing – saying that not only is von der Leyen’s Europe more expensive, but it protects its people less and less, citing the migrant crisis in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta.
© AP / Thomas Krych
08:29 GMT
Important note: Legally, there is no such thing as Associate EU Membership. It is not mentioned in the bloc’s founding treaties.
08:28 GMT
RECAP: Von der Leyen confirmed that unspent EU defense loans will be used to fund joint projects with Ukrainian weapons makers. Approximately €10-15 billion is available to Kiev’s corrupt arms industry, including the notorious Fire Point, about which RT has written.
08:28 GMT
“Long live Europe,” von der Leyen proclaims in English, German, and French as she concludes her address.
08:25 GMT
READ MORE: Mass Serbian public demonstrations mark Ratko Mladic burial (VIDEOS)

“We will soon be proposing road-maps for candidates that have made most progress, based on merit, and respect for our values is non-negotiable.” Von der Leyen notes her own horror at photos of the funeral of late Serbian General Ratko Mladic, who died in custody in The Hague.
08:24 GMT
The EU must also work together with Ukraine “to reduce our dependency on a single supplier” of air defense systems, von der Leyen says.
The recently launched Freyja project, aimed at developing a European-made alternative to US-made Patriots, “is only the beginning. More is needed,” she stresses.
08:24 GMT
“We have to win back the hearts of Europeans,” von der Leyen announces (not including Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and the UK).

16 September 2026
07:02 GMT
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said lawmakers will “ask questions and demand answers” from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during her State of the Union address.
She highlighted four priorities: competitiveness, security, climate action, and social protection, while noting “too many gaps” remain across the EU.
Metsola also welcomed the visit by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, saying it reflected the EU’s push to deepen ties with global partners.
07:13 GMT
MEPs are slowly making their way into the plenary chamber in Strasbourg.
The session will begin with a speech by European Parliament President Roberta Metsola.
Ursula von der Leyen, Roberta Metsola, and Mark Carney, the guest of honor, have entered the plenary chamber together.
07:17 GMT
Von der Leyen begins her speech by saying that the world is facing “exceptional” challenges.
In these conditions, “a stronger and more independent Europe is emerging,” breaking free from dependence from Russian energy, increasing defense spending by 80% over the last five years, and continuing to stand with Ukraine, she says.
07:19 GMT
Von der Leyen says the union is “never so strong and never so precarious. Great possibilities and great perils. Europe has chosen to forge its own path, and a stronger more independent Europe is now emerging. Breaking free from toxic dependency from Russian fossil fuels.

“This is a union that stands up for each other as we are doing by standing up for Ukraine, or Greenland.”

Neither Ukraine nor Greenland is in the EU.
07:20 GMT
The EU economy withstood the fallout of the US war against Iran “better than expected,” von der Leyen claims.
07:24 GMT
The goal of the bloc should be “building an independent Europe that has the power to act,” von der Leyen says.
“We must not let divisions hold us back” or allow “proxies and puppets of authoritarians” to undermine the EU’s democratic institutions, she insists.

Read more
The State of the EU: What von der Leyen won’t say in her speech
07:29 GMT
EU firms must compete on a level playing field with China, von der Leyen says.

The bloc’s trade deficit with Beijing has reached €1 billion a day, which is “a tipping point,” she argues.

Brussels is ready to “use all tools at its disposal to re-balance its relationship with China,” the EU chief says.
07:30 GMT
07:34 GMT
Von der Leyen tells her annual happy story about successful young people who met on an Erasmus course, and built a business with offices in three EU countries. She’s hard-mixing the EU with Europe now.
07:36 GMT
“We have too many dangerous dependencies in critical minerals and rare earth. We need to urgently procure and build up reserves. No country can do this on its own. This is why we will establish a new European corporation on critical raw materials to stockpile what we need for batteries and tech and defense. Our industry, independence, and security depend on this,” von der Leyen says.