BRUSSELS – Member of the European Parliament David McAllister was re-elected today as the chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament (AFET). McAllister, a member of the German Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the European People’s Party (EPP), has held this position since 2017.
McAllister was nominated by the EPP and was elected by acclamation.
“We certainly need to maintain a strong trans-Atlantic relationship irrespective of who will reside in the White House after January, we must contain an aggressive Russia and further increase support to Ukraine on its path to peace and membership in EU and NATO and at the same time we will continue our emphasis on our immediate neighbourhood and our partners in the Western Balkans”, McAllister said upon his re-election.
He announced that the next meeting of AFET will be held on 4 September. It is expected that the new rapporteurs for the Western Balkan and other countries will be elected in September.
Constitutive meetings of other European Parliament committees are also taking place today.
AFET also elected its vice-chairs today: Hana Jalloul Muro (Socialists and Democrats group), Urmas Paet (Renew Europe), Albercio Gambino (European Conservatives and Reformists) and Ioan-Rareş Bogdan (European People’s Party).
The first three vice-chairs were elected unopposed, while Ioan-Rareş Bogdan was nominated simultaneously with Kinga Gál, a member of Hungarian Fidesz and the new right-wing populist Patriots for Europe group. Bogdan received more votes than Gál, leaving the Patriots group without a vice-chair.