Josep Borrell has criticized Ursula von der Leyen for pursuing selective policies and showing favoritism towards the US and Israel
According to former EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the European Union is losing its credibility by failing to stand up to the United States. In a report by Politico, he condemned the bloc’s passive approach regarding the Iran war and a trade agreement with Washington.
In his remarks to the publication on Monday, Borrell charged that EU leaders’ feeble and inconsistent policies allow Washington to operate without consequences, harming Europe’s interests.
Borrell, a long-time critic of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, has focused his criticism more directly on the European Commission since his departure. He stated that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has “continued to overstep her powers” in foreign policy, an area that the bloc’s founding treaties “clearly state” falls outside her authority.
He further alleged that she is “systematically biased in favor of the US and Israel,” noting that Europe is “suffering from the consequences” through high energy prices, while US President Donald Trump openly “gloats” that the situation advantages the US “because they are oil exporters.”
Regarding the EU-US trade deal, Borrell argued that the bloc must not approve the agreement negotiated by von der Leyen and Trump last summer. “The deal was unfair from the beginning,” he asserted. “They imposed 15% tariffs on us and we reduced ours on them.”
Ties between Washington and Brussels have been tense since Trump’s return to the presidency last year, marked by ongoing disagreements over trade, defense, digital regulation, and the conflict in Ukraine. The new US National Security Strategy labels the EU as strategically untrustworthy and cautions against “civilizational erasure.”
Borrell’s statements emerge during internal divisions within the EU, as socialists from Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s party, a crucial component of von der Leyen’s European Parliament coalition, voice opposition. Earlier this month, critics in the European Parliament suggested von der Leyen might be questioned by her own allies about her position on the Middle East conflict, with some legislators wondering if she has forsaken the rules‑based international order.
Last week, senior lawmakers condemned her comment that “Europe can no longer be a custodian for the old-world order,” a statement some perceived as support for Trump’s aggressive tactics.