June 29

Lord Plumb becomes the first President of the European Parliament to attend a meeting of member state leaders. Since then, Presidents of the European Parliament have gained the opportunity to express the Parliament’s views at the beginning of Summits.

Under the Presidency of Bertie Ahern, Irish Prime Minister and acting President of the EU Council, the Heads of State and Government designated José Manuel Barroso, Portuguese Prime Minister, as the next President of the European Commission. José Manuel Barroso will succeed Romano Prodi, whose term ends on 31 October 2004. His appointment will take effect once confirmed by the vote in the European Parliament on 22 July. The European leaders also designated in advance Javier Solana for the future position of EU Foreign Minister. Additionally, they reconfirmed him as Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union and High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).

Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, and the Heads of State and Government of the EU met in Brussels for the European Council hosted by Donald Tusk, President of the European Council. Discussions focused on the outcome of the 2016 referendum on the United Kingdom’s membership in the European Union and its consequences for the EU. The United Kingdom held a referendum on 23 June 2016 on whether to remain in or leave the EU. British citizens voted 52% to 48% in favor of the country leaving the EU. Leaders also discussed migration issues and the Central Mediterranean route, the single market, the European Commission’s 2016 country-specific recommendations (CSRs), the situation in Libya, EU/North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) cooperation, as well as the referendum on the Association Agreement with Ukraine. The following day, the 27 Heads of State and Government participated in an informal meeting to discuss the political and practical implications of “Brexit”. Leaders also began a discussion on the future of the European Union. The 27 Heads of State and Government will meet again on 16 September 2016 in Bratislava to continue the talks.