Nominated by the 27 EU governments for a second term, José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, had to struggle hard to get a vote of confirmation by the Parliament.
But now it’s done. With 382 yes and 219 no votes, he did not only pass the threshold of a simple majority, but got an absolute majority — which means that in case the Lisbon treaty enters into force, there needs to be no second vote.
A visibly emotional Barroso, who changes to his native Portugese language instead of English or French (which he usually uses), is thanking the Parliament. Watch it here.
What does the fact that Barroso gets a second term mean for the EU’s foreign relations? On 3 September 2009, Barroso has presented the Political guidelines for the next commission, a political program for the five years to come. They also contain a foreign policy section. To give an idea of Barroso’s thoughts on foreign policy, I have posted the relevant part of the guidelines on GLOBAL EUROPE in the section Standpoint, you can read it here.