The recent climbdown by Ursula von der Leyen before the European Parliament over the Multiannual Financial Framework is not merely a technocratic negotiating episode. It is a sign of institutional fatigue afflicting the European Union at a time when its cohesion and political unity are being tested.
The European Parliament is now asserting an active role in shaping the Union’s budget and priorities, seeking a balance of powers vis-à-vis the Commission. The President of the Commission, under political pressure and with the European elections approaching, is attempting to defuse tensions with gestures of goodwill—an enhanced role for Parliament, the return of competences to the regions, and a “target for rural areas” that lends social legitimacy.
Yet behind this institutional confrontation, a critical question emerges: can Europe regain its political soul? The Union cannot move forward with mechanisms exhausted by mere management. It needs vision, leadership, and citizen participation.
Von der Leyen still has the opportunity to prove that she can rise above the balancing acts as the leader of a Europe unafraid to renew itself—and to inspire once again.