Politico reported on the EU's fear of expanding von der Leyen's powers amid the crisis

The leaders of the European Union (EU) member states fear that the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, may take advantage of the crisis to expand Brussels' powers and influence. This was reported on March 3 by the newspaper Politico with reference to sources.

"National capitals are afraid that the Chairman of the EC...It will take advantage of this crisis to expand the powers of Brussels to new areas and strengthen its influence on national governments," the article says.

According to the newspaper, von der Leyen at the EU summit on On March 6, Ukraine is going to present a new program to strengthen its defense capability. At the same time, it is noted that many European politicians do not want to increase defense spending.

One of the unnamed senior officials said that defense remains the responsibility of all countries of the association. In particular, Finland and Poland want to isolate the military-industrial complex from the European Commission.

After the summit in London on March 2, von der Leyen stated href="https://iz.ru/1847734/2025-03-02/glava-ek-zaavila-o-neobhodimosti-srocnogo-vooruzenia-evropeiskih-stran " target="_blank">on the need to arm European countries as soon as possible. She noted that the EC will change budget norms and financial rules to provide EU members with more opportunities to invest in the military industry.