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Robert Fico
Prime Minister of Slovakia
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 April 2012
President	Ivan Gašparovič
Preceded by	Iveta Radičová
In office 4 July 2006 – 8 July 2010
President	Ivan Gašparovič
Preceded by	Mikuláš Dzurinda
Succeeded by	Iveta Radičová
Member of the National Council
In office 23 June 1992 – 4 July 2006
In office 8 July 2010 – 4 April 2012
Personal details
Born	(1964-09-15) 15 September 1964 (age 47) Topoľčany, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia)
Political party	Communist Party (1987–1990) Party of the Democratic Left (1990–1999) Direction-Social Democracy (1999–present)
Spouse(s)	Svetlana Ficová
Children	1 son
Alma mater	Comenius University in Bratislava

Robert Fico (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈrɔbɛrt ˈfit͡sɔ]), (born 15 September 1964) is a Slovak politician who has been Prime Minister of Slovakia since April 2012. Previously he was Prime Minister from 4 July 2006 until 8 July 2010.

Life and early career[link]

Fico was born in 1964, in the town of Topoľčany. His father was a forklift operator and his mother worked in a shoe store. He has two siblings, and is married to Svetlana Ficová; they have one son.

Fico graduated from the Law Faculty of the Comenius University at Bratislava, in what was then Czechoslovakia, and later worked for the Institute of State and Law of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. He joined the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia in 1987. After the Velvet Revolution of 1989, and the collapse of the communist regime in Czechoslovakia, Fico joined the Party of the Democratic Left (SDL), a successor of the Communist Party of Slovakia. From 1994 to 2000 Fico represented Slovakia as its legal counsel at the European Court of Human Rights but lost all 14 cases which he handled.^[1]

In 1999, when support for the SDL dropped below the threshold required to get into parliament, Fico left and founded Direction – Social Democracy (SMER), becoming a popular opposition politician while criticizing the reforms of the right-wing government of Mikuláš Dzurinda. Eventually, SMER became popular enough that it absorbed its parent party.

Political career[link]

2006 government coalition controversy[link]

In the elections in 2006 SMER won with 29.1% of the votes and formed a coalition government with Vladimír Mečiar's People's Party – Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) and Ján Slota's Slovak National Party (SNS). Slota has been known for making anti-gypsy and anti-Hungarian comments,^[2] including a drunken public speech in which he threatened to "get in tanks and level Budapest to the ground".^[3][4]

One reaction to the coalition came from the EU-wide Party of European Socialists (PES), who suspended SMER's application to join the PES. In late February 2008 however the Assembly of PES conditionally reinstated the application after both SMER and SNS signed a letter committing themselves to respect minority rights.^[5][6]

Fico has never publicly condemned Slota's remarks and speeches, and government-level relations between Slovakia and Hungary have deteriorated. Several meetings between the two countries' prime ministers were abruptly cancelled, and those few that did take place resulted in little improvement of relations.^[7]

2010 election[link]

Before the 2010 elections, Fico's party, seeking reelection was in a relatively strong position according to several polls. However just before the election a political scandal broke out, described as one of the gravest in the country's 17-year history.^[8] A voice recording surfaced in which a voice strongly resembling that of Fico^[9] claims that he raised several million euros in undeclared funds for the 2002 election as well as calling for a "parallel financial structure" to be created for the financing of Smer's election campaign. Slovak media sources such as SME carried the news about the recording in great detail; however Fico dismissed it as a forgery.^[8]

Fico also attacked the media sources that published information about the recording, saying "Should I go over there and give you a smack because you are scoundrels? What you are doing is unheard of. You are masturbating on the prime minister every day."^[8] Fico has since been questioned on the matter, SME announced. Daniel Lipsic^[who?] told the press he has "handed the recording to the general attorney office". In the election, Fico's SMER remained the biggest party in Parliament, with 62 seats. However, his coalition partners were decimated, with the HZDS being completely shut out. Unable to find a partner willing to given him the 14 seats he needed to stay in office, Fico resigned. He said he "respects the election result" and expressed his desire to lead a resolute opposition after his narrow loss.^[10]

2012 election[link]

Following the fall of the government that replaced his, Fico's Smer-SD returned to power being the first party since the breakup of Czechoslovakia to win an absolute majority of seats. Fico initially sought to form a national unity government, but when this failed he formed the first one-party government in Slovakia since 1998.

Domestic policy[link]

Robert Fico meeting with Serbian President Boris Tadić.

A large part of Fico's election victory in 2010 was attributed to his loud criticism of the previous right-wing government's economic, tax, social, pension and legislative reforms. The reforms were generally perceived as very positive and successful by such international bodies as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank or the OECD,^[11] however they negatively affected certain segments of the population, particularly low wage earners, the unemployed, and welfare and other social assistance recipients.

While in opposition, and primarily during the election campaign, Fico vowed to reverse and cancel the majority of these reforms, however, upon taking office he adopted a more cautious approach. Slovakia was starting to fulfill the Maastricht criteria required for Euro currency adoption, which it completed on 1 January 2009.

The most successful reforms Fico introduced were to establish some reasonable standards in how many times employees may be kept on as temporary workers instead of being given permanent contracts. Under the one-sided, pro-employer legislation of the Mikulas Dzurinda government an employer could (and many did) keep new staff as temps and create a two-tier workforce. Slovakia's labor policies are generally in tune with most other EU states. One of few modifications Fico's government did implement was a slight modification to the unusual flat tax system introduced by the previous government in a way that slightly decreased or eradicated a tax-free part of income for higher income earners. A lower value added tax was imposed on medications and books, though in spite of his election promises Fico failed to extend this onto a wider group of products such as groceries. Among the measures were controversial legislative changes which effectively banned private health insurance companies from generating profit. As a result Slovakia is being sued by several foreign shareholders of local health insurers through international arbitrations.^[12] In 2007, Fico unsuccessfully tried to regulate retail food prices, an unprecedented effort in a generally free market European union.^[13]

In August 2008, Fico threatened the foreign shareholders of a local gas distributor SPP, the French Gaz de France and the German E.ON, with nationalization and seizure of their ownership shares in a dispute over retail gas prices.^[14][15]

In 2010, Fico faced large scale protests and a blockade of major cities by truckers upset about badly implemented tolls on the highways. Truckers demanded that fuel prices be lowered to compensate for the tolls.^[16] Fico initially refused to speak with representatives of the truckers, saying he would not "be blackmailed", but a few days later capitulated. The cuts given to truckers will amount to about €100,000,000.^[16]

Foreign policy[link]

Robert Fico with Mirko Cvetković during the state visit to Serbia

In foreign policy, Fico's government has faced controversies due to their affiliation with internationally isolated parties of Vladimír Mečiar and Jan Slota.^[17]

Compensating his lack of close political allies within the EU (the head of the Czech Social Democrats Jiri Paroubek being a notable exception), Fico has been actively strengthening relations with several non-EU countries such as Serbia and Russia. Slovakia modernised Russian MiG-fighters in Russia and did not buy new NATO-standard jets from the West.^[18] Additionally Fico accused Georgia of provoking Russia when attacking South Ossetia in 2008.^[19]

Fico is an opponent of the planned construction of new U.S. anti-ballistic missile and radar systems in military bases in neighbouring Czech Republic and Poland^[20] and one of the first steps upon taking the PM's office was a military pullout from Iraq. Fico opposed the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo, as a result of which Slovakia has not recognised Kosovo as a sovereign state.^[21]

Fico and the media[link]

During his press conferences he often verbally attacks, lectures and taunts the present journalists, often accusing them of bias and attacks on his government. On several occasions he has openly and on record used profanities against specific journalists (“idiots”, “pricks”).^[22][23] After characterising journalists as “hyenas”,^[24] the broadsheet Pravda adopted a hyena from Bratislava Zoo.^[25]

Fico, on at least one occasion, issued an apology to a foreign politician whose visit to Slovakia was largely ignored by the media. When Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov visited in April 2008, most media did not consider the visit of the virtually unknown Zubkov substantially newsworthy. To make matters worse, during the press conference the journalists were not allowed to ask any questions. Subsequently Fico sent Zubkov a letter of apology in which he apologized for the Slovak media's lack of interest in his visit.^[26]

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Fico Threat, by Martin M. Simecka (March 2009 essay)
• Fico profile
• "Slovakia's election: Slovakia turns left". The Economist. 11 March 2012. http://www.economist.com/blogs/easternapproaches/2012/03/slovakias-election. 

v t e Government of Slovakia 2006–2010 Prime Minister Robert Fico Deputy prime ministers Dušan Čaplovič  · Robert Kaliňák  · Ján Mikolaj  · Štefan Harabín Ministers Ján Počiatek  · Ján Kubiš  · Ľubomír Jahnátek  · Jaroslav Baška  · František Kašický  · Marek Maďarič  · Ivan Valentovič  · Zdenka Kramplová  · Miroslav Jureňa  · Ľubomír Vážny  · Marian Janušek  · Viera Tomanová  · Jaroslav Izák v t e European Council List of meetings · President · Party composition (1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 (Jan–Apr) • 2004 (May–Dec) • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012) Van Rompuy (President) · Faymann · Di Rupo · Borisov · Christofias · Nečas · Thorning-Schmidt · Ansip · Katainen · Hollande · Merkel · Pikrammenos · Orbán · Kenny · Monti · Dombrovskis · Grybauskaitė · Juncker · Gonzi · Rutte · Tusk · Passos Coelho · Băsescu · Fico · Janša · Rajoy · Reinfeldt · Cameron · Barroso European Union Portal Persondata Name Fico, Robert Alternative names Short description Slovakian politician Date of birth 15 September 1964 Place of birth Topoľčany, Czechoslovakia (now Topoľčany, Slovakia) Date of death Place of death

His Excellency José Manuel Barroso
President of the European Commission
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 November 2004
Vice President	Margot Wallström Catherine Ashton
Council	Herman Van Rompuy
Preceded by	Romano Prodi
Prime Minister of Portugal
In office 6 April 2002 – 17 July 2004
President	Jorge Sampaio
Preceded by	António Guterres
Succeeded by	Pedro Santana Lopes
Personal details
Born	(1956-03-23) 23 March 1956 (age 56) Lisbon, Portugal
Political party	National: Portuguese Workers' Communist Party (Before 1976) Social Democratic Party (1976–present) European: European People's Party
Spouse(s)	Maria Sousa Uva
Children	Luís Guilherme Francisco
Alma mater	University of Lisbon European University Institute University of Geneva Georgetown University
Signature
Website	Official website Official Media Gallery

José Manuel Durão Barroso (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈzɛ mɐnuˈɛɫ duˈɾɐ̃w bɐˈʁozu]; born 23 March 1956) is the 11th and current President of the European Commission and a Portuguese politician. He served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 6 April 2002 to 17 July 2004.

Academic career[link]

Durão Barroso (as he is known in Portugal) graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon and has an MSc in Economic and Social Sciences from the University of Geneva (Institut Européen de l'Université de Genève) in Switzerland. His academic career continued as an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon. He did research for a PhD at Georgetown University and Georgetown's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in Washington, D.C. but his CV does not list any doctoral degree (except honorary).^[1] He is a 1998 graduate of the Georgetown Leadership Seminar.^[2] Back in Lisbon, Barroso became Director of the Department for International Relations at Lusíada University (Universidade Lusíada). He received honorary degrees from many Universities listed under honorary degrees.

Early political career[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2011)

Barroso's political activity began in his late teens, during the Estado Novo regime in Portugal, before the Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974. In his college days, he was one of the leaders of the underground Maoist MRPP (Reorganising Movement of the Proletariat Party, later PCTP/MRPP, Communist Party of the Portuguese Workers/Revolutionary Movement of the Portuguese Proletariat). In an interview with the newspaper Expresso, he said that he had joined MRPP to fight the only other student body movement, also underground, which was controlled by the Portuguese Communist Party. Despite this justification there is a very famous political 1976 interview recorded by the Portuguese state-run television channel — RTP, in which Barroso, as a politically minded student during the post-Carnation Revolution turmoil known as PREC, criticises the bourgeois education system which "throws students against workers and workers against students."^[3] In December 1980, Barroso joined the right-of-centre PPD (Democratic Popular Party, later PPD/PSD-Social Democratic Party), where he remains to the present day.

In 1985, under the PSD government of Aníbal Cavaco Silva (now President of Portugal), Barroso was named Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs. In 1987 he became a member of the same government as he was elevated to Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (answering to the Minister of Foreign Affairs), a post he was to hold for the next five years. In this capacity he was the driving force behind the Bicesse Accords of 1990, which led to a temporary armistice in the Angolan Civil War between the ruling MPLA and the opposition UNITA. He also supported independence for East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, then a province of Indonesia by force. In 1992, Barroso was promoted to the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, and served in this capacity until the defeat of the PSD in the 1995 general election.

Prime Minister of Portugal[link]

In opposition, Barroso was elected to the Assembly of the Republic in 1995 as a representative for Lisbon. There, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. In 1999 he was elected president of his political party, PSD, succeeding Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (a professor of law), and thus became Leader of the Opposition. Parliamentary elections in 2002 gave the PSD enough seats to form a coalition government with the right-wing Portuguese People's Party, and Barroso subsequently became Prime Minister of Portugal on 6 April 2002. As Prime Minister, facing a growing budget deficit, he made a number of difficult decisions and adopted strict reforms. He vowed to reduce public expenditure, which made him unpopular among leftists and public servants.^{[citation needed]}. His purpose was to lower the public budget deficit to a 3% target (according to the demands of EU rules), and official data during the 2002–2004 period stated that the target was being attained. Barroso did not finish his term as he had been nominated as President of the European Commission on 5 July 2004. Barroso arranged with Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio to nominate Pedro Santana Lopes as a substitute Prime Minister of Portugal. Santana Lopes led the PSD/PP coalition for a few months until early 2005, when new elections were called. When the Portuguese Socialist Party won the elections it produced an estimation that by the end of the year the budget deficit would reach 6.1%,^[4] which it used to criticise Barroso's and Santana Lopes's economic policies.

In 2003, Barroso hosted U.S President George W. Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar in the Portuguese island of Terceira, in the Azores. The four leaders finalised the controversial US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq. Under Barroso's leadership, Portugal became part of the "coalition of the willing" for the invasion and occupation of Iraq, sending non-combat troops.^{[citation needed]}

President of the European Commission[link]

The "three European presidents", Jerzy Buzek (Parliament), José Manuel Barroso (Commission) and Herman Van Rompuy (European Council) during a press conference in 2011

This section requires expansion.

In 2004, the proposed European Constitution and now the Treaty of Lisbon included a provision that the choice of President must take into account the result of Parliamentary elections and the candidate supported by the victorious Europarty in particular. That provision was not in force in the nomination in 2004, but the centre-right European People's Party (EPP), who won the elections, pressured for a candidate from its own ranks. In the end, José Manuel Barroso, the EPP candidate, was chosen by the European Council.^[5]

On the same basis, the EPP again endorsed Barroso for a second term during the 2009 European election campaign and, after the EPP again won the elections, was able to secure his nomination by the European Council on 17 June 2009. On 3 September 2009, Barroso unveiled his manifesto for his second term.^[6] On 16 September 2009, Barroso was re-elected by the European Parliament for another five years.^[7][8][9] If he completes his second term he will become only the second Commission president to serve two terms, after Jacques Delors.

During his first presidency, the following important issues were on the Commission's agenda:

• Turkey applying for EU membership
• The reform of the institutions (Treaty of Lisbon)
• The Bolkestein directive, aimed at creating a single market for services within the EU
• Lisbon Strategy
• Galileo positioning system
• Doha Development Agenda negotiations
• European Institute of Innovation and Technology
• An EU climate change package

One of his first tasks since being re-elected was a visit to Ireland to persuade Irish citizens to approve the Treaty of Lisbon in the country's second referendum due to be held the following month.^[10] Barroso was greeted by Irish Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea and Peter Power, the Minister of State for Overseas Development, as he got off his plane at Shannon Airport on the morning of 19 September 2009 before briefly meeting with the joint committee of the Oireachtas and meeting and greeting people at functions in Limerick's City Hall, University of Limerick (UL) and the Savoy Hotel.^[10] He told The Irish Times in an interview referenced internationally by Reuters that he had been asked if Ireland would split from the European Union.^[11] He also launched a €14.8 million grant for former workers at Dell's Limerick plant, described as "conveniently opportune" by former Member of the European Parliament and anti-Lisbonite Patricia McKenna.^[12]

Controversies[link]

In 2005 Die Welt reported that Barroso had spent a week on the yacht of the Greek shipping billionaire Spiro Latsis. It emerged soon afterwards that this had occurred only a month before the Commission approved 10 million euros of Greek state aid for Latsis's shipping company – though the state aid decision had been taken by the previous European Commission before Barroso took up his post.^[13] In response to this revelation, Nigel Farage MEP of the UK Independence Party persuaded around 75 MEPs from across the political spectrum to back a motion of no confidence in Barroso, so as to compel him to appear before the European Parliament to be questioned on the matter.^[14] The motion was tabled on 12 May 2005, and Barroso appeared before Parliament as required at a debate on 26 May 2005.^[15] The motion itself was heavily defeated.

In response to criticism for his choice of a less fuel efficient Volkswagen Touareg, amid EU legislation of targets drastically to reduce car CO₂ emissions, Barroso dismissed this as "overzealous moralism".^[16]

In April 2008, amid sharp food price rises and mounting food vs fuel concerns, Barroso insisted that biofuel use was "not significant" in pushing up food prices.^[17] The following month, he announced a study that would look into the issue.^[18] The backdoor approval of the GE potato, by President Barroso, has met a wave of strong opposition from EU member-states. The governments of Greece, Austria, Luxembourg, Italy, Hungary and France have all publicly announced that they will not allow the GE potato to be grown in their countries.

Personal life[link]

José Manuel Durão Barroso is the son of Luís António Saraiva Barroso and his wife Maria Elisabete de Freitas Durão. In 1980 he married Maria Margarida Pinto Ribeiro de Sousa Uva, with whom he has three sons: Luís, Guilherme, and Francisco de Sousa Uva Durão Barroso.^{[citation needed]}

Apart from Portuguese, Barroso is fluent in French,^[19] speaks Spanish and English and has taken a course to acquire a basic knowledge of German.^[20]

Honours[link]

Barroso holds over twenty decorations, including.^[21]

• Portugal's Gra-Cruz da Ordem Militar de Cristo in 1996;
• Winner of the Casa da Imprensa prize in the area of politics in 1992
• Named Global Leader for Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum in 1993
• Chosen Personality of the Year in 1991 and 2004 by the Foreign Press Association in Portugal
• Given “Medalla de la Universidad de Alcala de Henares” and “Medalla de Oro de la Ciudad de Zamora”, Spain, 2005
• Golden Medal: The Bell Celebration – Message to the United Europe, from the Ferdinan Martinengo Company, Slovakia, 2006
• EFR-Business Week Award from Erasmus University Rotterdam, 2006.
• Honorary Citizen of Rio de Janeiro, June 2006.
• "European of the Year" award by European Voice newspaper, November 2006.
• Awarded Honorary HEC diploma, Paris, December 2006.
• Special Prize, Business Centre Club, Poland, February 2007; Gold Medal of the city of Lamego, Portugal, April 2007;
• Transatlantic Leadership Prize, European Institute, Washington DC, April 2007;
• Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the Great (Lithuania, 06/2007)^[22]
• Honorary Citizen of Delphi and Golden Medal of the "Amfiktyons", Delphi, Greece, July 2007;
• Academic Title EBAPE – FGV, for the relevant contribution and services towards the study and practice in Administration - Getulio Vargas Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, August 2007
• Conde de Barcelona International Prize from the Conde de Barcelona Foundation, Barcelona, November 2007.
• Honorary Medal and Honorary Diploma of the City of Nicosia, Nicosia, January 2008.
• Honorary Member, Academia Portuguesa da História, Lisbon, March 2008.
• State Medal "Stara Planina" I Degree, Bulgaria, March 2008.
• "Prémio Rotary da Paz", Rotary International Distrito 1960 Portugal, Lisbon, April 2008; "Chave de Honra da Cidade de Lisboa", Lisbon, May 2008.
• Confraria Queijo S. Jorge, Acores, May 2008.
• Ciudadino Andino Honorifico, Lima, Peru, May 2008.
• "Transatlantic Business Award", American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union, Brussels, May 2008.
• Confraria vinho do Porto, Porto, June 2008.
• Orden de la Cruz de Terra Mariana, Primera clase, Tallinn, February 2009.
• Gold Medal of the Royal Institute of European Studies, Royal Institute of European Studies Madrid, March 2009.
• Gold Medal of the Hellenic Parliament, Athens, April 2009.
• Medal of Honour and Benefaction of the City of Athens, Athens, April 2009.
• European Excellence Award, by the Government Council of the Community of Madrid, May 2009.
• Prix European of the Year, The European Movement in Denmark, Copenhagen, May 2009.
• Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the Great, Vilnius, June 2009.
• Laureate of the Quadriga Prize 2009 - United for the Better, Berlin, October 2009
• Collar of the Order "pro Merito Melitensi", the Order of Malta, Rome, May 2010.
• Medal of Merit from the Federação das Associações Portuguesas e Luso-brasileiras, Brazil, July 2010.
• "Man of the Year 2009 of Central and Eastern Europe", Krynica, September 2010.
• Great Collar of the Order of Timor-Leste, Brussels, October 2010.
• Golden Victoria "European of the Year 2010" award by the Union of German Magazine Publishers VDZ, Berlin, November 2010.
• Collar of the European Merit Foundation, Luxembourg, November 2010.
• the "Steiger" Award 2011, Bochum, Germany, March 2011.

Honorary Degrees[link]

• Honorary Degree from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island, 2005
• Honorary Degree in Humanities from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
• Honorary Degree in Political Science from the University of Genoa, Italy, 2006
• Honorary Degree in Law from Kobe University, Japan, April 2006.
• Honorary Doctorate in Social and Human Sciences from Candido Mendes University, Rio de Janeiro, June 2006.
• Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science, University of Edinburgh, November 2006.^[23]
• Honorary Degree from the Economics Faculty of the "La Sapienza" University of Rome, January 2007
• Honorary doctorate at Warsaw School of Economics, Warsaw, November 2007.^[24]
• Doctor Honoris Causa degree at the Pontifical Catholic University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, March 2008.
• Honorary degree of Doctor of Laws, University of Liverpool, July 2008; "Prémio Política e Responsabilidade Social", Fundação Luso-Brasileira, Lisbon, October 2008.
• Honorary Degree of Doctor, Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, Nice, November 2008.
• Doctor Honoris Causa, Tomas Bata University, Zlin, Czech Republic, April 2009.
• Honorary doctorate of the Chemnitz University of Technology, Chemnitz, May 2009.^[25]
• Honorary doctorate of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, USA, September 2009.
• Doctor Honoris Causa, University Estácio de Sá, Rio de Janeiro, July 2010.
• Doctorate Honoris Causa, Łódź University, Poland, October 2010.
• Doctorate Honoris Causa, University of Geneva, October 2010.
• Doctorate Honoris Causa, University of Bucharest, November 2010.
• Honorary Doctorate, Baku State University, Azerbaijan, January 2011.
• Honorary Doctorate, Luiss Guido Carli University, Rome, March 2011.
• Honorary Doctorate, Ghent University, March 2011.

See also[link]

• President of the European Commission
• European Union law

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: José Manuel Barroso

• President José Manuel Barroso – Official Media Gallery
• European Commission – President José Manuel Barroso
• tellBarroso.eu – a web service for telling Barroso: "What can Europe do for you?"

v t e European Commission Presidents and their Commissions ECSC: Jean Monnet (1952) • René Mayer (1955) • Paul Finet (1958) • Piero Malvestiti (1959) • Rinaldo Del Bo (1963) • Albert Coppé (1963) EAEC: Louis Armand (1958) • Étienne Hirsch (1959) • Pierre Chatenet (1962) EEC: Walter Hallstein (1958)2 EC: Jean Rey (1967) • Franco Maria Malfatti (1970) • Sicco Mansholt (1972) • François-Xavier Ortoli (1973) • Roy Jenkins (1977) • Gaston Thorn (1981) • Jacques Delors (1985)2 EU: Jacques Delors (1993) • Jacques Santer (1995) • Manuel Marín (1999) • Romano Prodi (1999) • José Manuel Barroso (2004)2 Commission President  · President of the European Council  · Council Presidency  · President of Parliament

v t e Barroso Commission I (2004–2009) Joaquín Almunia · Catherine Ashton6 · José Manuel Barroso1 · Jacques Barrot2 · Joe Borg · Karel De Gucht9 · Stavros Dimas · Benita Ferrero-Waldner · Ján Figeľ10 · Franco Frattini2, 5 · Mariann Fischer Boel · Dalia Grybauskaitė7 · Danuta Hübner8 · Siim Kallas2 · László Kovács · Neelie Kroes · Meglena Kuneva3 · Markos Kyprianou4 · Peter Mandelson6 · Charlie McCreevy · Louis Michel9 · Leonard Orban3 · Andris Piebalgs · Janez Potočnik · Viviane Reding · Olli Rehn · Paweł Samecki8 · Maroš Šefčovič10 · Algirdas Šemeta7 · Vladimír Špidla · Antonio Tajani2, 5 · Androulla Vassiliou4 · Günter Verheugen2 · Margot Wallström2 1 = President. 2 = Vice President. 3 = Served from 1 January 2007. 4 = Vassiliou replaced Kyprianou on 3 March 2008. 5 = Tajani replaced Frattini on 18 June 2008. 6 = Ashton replaced Mandelson on 3 October 2008. 7 = Šemeta replaced Grybauskaitė on 1 July 2009. 8 = Samecki replaced Hübner on 4 July 2009. 9 = De Gucht replaced Michel on 17 July 2009. 10 = Šefčovič replaced Figeľ on 1 October 2009.

v t e Barroso Commission II (since 2010) Joaquín Almunia2 · László Andor · Catherine Ashton2 · Michel Barnier · José Manuel Barroso1 · Dacian Cioloş · John Dalli · Maria Damanaki · Štefan Füle · Máire Geoghegan-Quinn · Kristalina Georgieva · Karel De Gucht · Johannes Hahn · Connie Hedegaard · Siim Kallas2 · Neelie Kroes2 · Janusz Lewandowski · Cecilia Malmström · Günther Oettinger · Andris Piebalgs · Janez Potočnik · Viviane Reding2 · Olli Rehn · Antonio Tajani2 · Androulla Vassiliou · Maroš Šefčovič2 · Algirdas Šemeta 1 = President. 2 = Vice President.

v t e European Council List of meetings · President · Party composition (1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 (Jan–Apr) • 2004 (May–Dec) • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012) Van Rompuy (President) · Faymann · Di Rupo · Borisov · Christofias · Nečas · Thorning-Schmidt · Ansip · Katainen · Hollande · Merkel · Pikrammenos · Orbán · Kenny · Monti · Dombrovskis · Grybauskaitė · Juncker · Gonzi · Rutte · Tusk · Passos Coelho · Băsescu · Fico · Janša · Rajoy · Reinfeldt · Cameron · Barroso European Union Portal

Angela Merkel
Chancellor of Germany
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 November 2005
President	Horst Köhler Christian Wulff Joachim Gauck
Deputy	Franz Müntefering Frank-Walter Steinmeier Guido Westerwelle Philipp Rösler
Preceded by	Gerhard Schröder
Minister of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
In office 17 November 1994 – 26 October 1998
Chancellor	Helmut Kohl
Preceded by	Klaus Töpfer
Succeeded by	Jürgen Trittin
Minister of Women and Youth
In office 18 January 1991 – 17 November 1994
Chancellor	Helmut Kohl
Preceded by	Ursula Lehr
Succeeded by	Claudia Nolte
Member of the Bundestag
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 December 1990
Preceded by	Constituency established
Constituency	Stralsund-Nordvorpommern- Rügen
Personal details
Born	Angela Dorothea Kasner (1954-07-17) 17 July 1954 (age 57) Hamburg, West Germany (now Germany)
Political party	Christian Democratic Union (1990–present)
Other political affiliations	Democratic Awakening (1989–1990)
Spouse(s)	Ulrich Merkel (1977–1982) Joachim Sauer (1998–present)
Alma mater	University of Leipzig
Religion	Lutheran
Signature

Angela Dorothea Merkel, German: [aŋˈɡeːla doʁoˈteːa ˈmɛʁkl̩] ( listen);^[1] née Kasner (born 17 July 1954) is the Chancellor of Germany and Chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).^[2] Merkel is the first female Chancellor of Germany.

A physical chemist by professional background, Merkel entered politics in the wake of the Revolutions of 1989 and briefly served as the deputy spokesperson for Lothar de Maizière's democratically elected East German government prior to the German reunification. Following reunification in 1990, she was elected to the Bundestag, where she has represented the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern since. She served as Federal Minister for Women and Youth 1991–1994 and as Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety 1994–1998 in Helmut Kohl's fourth and fifth cabinets. She was Secretary General of the CDU 1998–2000, and was elected chairperson in 2000. From 2002 to 2005, she was also chair of the CDU/CSU parliamentary coalition.

After her election as Chancellor following the 2005 federal election, she led a grand coalition consisting of her own CDU party, its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), until 2009. In the 2009 federal election, the CDU obtained the largest share of the votes, and formed a coalition government with the CSU and the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP).^[3]

In 2007, Merkel was President of the European Council and chaired the G8, the second woman (after Margaret Thatcher) to do so. She played a central role in the negotiation of the Treaty of Lisbon and the Berlin Declaration. One of her priorities was also to strengthen transatlantic economic relations by signing the agreement for the Transatlantic Economic Council on 30 April 2007. Merkel is seen as playing a crucial role in managing the financial crisis at the European and international level, and has been referred to as "the decider."^[4] In domestic policy, health care reform and problems concerning future energy development have been major issues of her tenure.

Angela Merkel has for several years been described as the world’s most powerful woman and as "the de facto leader of the European Union".^[5][6]

Early life[link]

Merkel was born Angela Dorothea Kasner in Hamburg, West Germany, the daughter of Horst Kasner (1926–2011),^[7] native of Berlin, and his wife, Herlind (born 1928 in Danzig, as Herlind Jentzsch), a teacher of English and Latin. Her mother was once a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.^[8] In an interview with Der Spiegel in 2000, Merkel stated that she was one quarter Polish.^[9] The Preußische Allgemeine Zeitung, attempting to establish if this referred to her grandparents on her mother's side, Willi Jentzsch and Gertrud Drange, reported that, according to their researches, they were both of German descent and lived in Danzig where Willi Jentzsch was a Gymnasium teacher.^[10] She has a brother, Marcus (born 7 July 1957), and a sister, Irene (born 19 August 1964).

Merkel's father studied theology in Heidelberg and, afterwards, in Hamburg. In 1954 her father received a pastorate at the church in Quitzow (near Perleberg in Brandenburg), which then was in East Germany, and the family moved to Templin. Thus Merkel grew up in the countryside 80 km (50 mi) north of Berlin. Gerd Langguth, a former senior member of Merkel's Christian Democratic Union, states in his book^[11] that the family's ability to travel freely from East to West Germany during the following years, as well as their possession of two automobiles, leads to the conclusion that Merkel's father had a "sympathetic" relationship with the communist regime, since such freedom and perquisites for a Christian pastor and his family would have been otherwise impossible in East Germany.

Like most pupils, Merkel was a member of the official, Socialist-led youth movement Free German Youth (FDJ). However, she did not take part in the secular coming of age ceremony Jugendweihe, which was common in East Germany, and was confirmed instead. Later, at the Academy of Sciences, she became a member of the FDJ district board and secretary for "Agitprop" (Agitation and Propaganda). Merkel herself claimed that she was secretary for culture. When Merkel's onetime FDJ district chairman contradicted her, she insisted that: "According to my memory, I was secretary for culture. But what do I know? I believe I won't know anything when I'm 80."^[12] Merkel's progress in the compulsory Marxism-Leninism course was graded only genügend (sufficient, passing grade) in 1983 and 1986.^[13]

At school, she learned to speak Russian fluently, and was awarded prizes for her proficiency in Russian and Mathematics.^[14] Merkel was educated in Templin and at the University of Leipzig, where she studied physics from 1973 to 1978. While a student, she participated in the reconstruction of the ruin of the Moritzbastei, a project students initiated to create their own club and recreation facility on campus. Such an initiative was unprecedented in the GDR of that period, and initially resisted by the University of Leipzig. However, with backing of the local leadership of the SED party, the project was allowed to proceed.^[15] Merkel worked and studied at the Central Institute for Physical Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences in Berlin-Adlershof from 1978 to 1990. After being awarded a doctorate (Dr. rer. nat.) for her thesis on quantum chemistry,^[16] she worked as a researcher and published several papers.

In 1989, Merkel got involved in the growing democracy movement after the fall of the Berlin Wall, joining the new party Democratic Awakening. Following the first (and only) democratic election of the East German state, she became the deputy spokesperson of the new pre-unification caretaker government under Lothar de Maizière.^[17]

Member of Bundestag and cabinet minister[link]

At the first post-reunification general election in December 1990, she was elected to the Bundestag from the constituency Stralsund – Nordvorpommern – Rügen, which is coextensive with the district of Vorpommern-Rügen. This has remained her electoral district until today. Her party merged with the west German CDU^[18] and she became Minister for Women and Youth in Helmut Kohl's 3rd cabinet. In 1994, she was made Minister for the Environment and Nuclear Safety, which gave her greater political visibility and a platform on which to build her political career. As one of Kohl's protégées and his youngest cabinet minister, she was referred to by Kohl as "mein Mädchen" ("my girl").^[19]

Leader of the opposition[link]

Merkel (right) as deputy government spokesperson together with Lothar de Maizière, August 1990

When the Kohl government was defeated in the 1998 general election, Merkel was named Secretary-General of the CDU. In this position, Merkel oversaw a string of Christian Democrat election victories in six out of seven state elections in 1999 alone, breaking the SPD-Green coalition's hold on the Bundesrat, the legislative body representing the states. Following a party financing scandal, which compromised many leading figures of the CDU (most notably Kohl himself, who refused to reveal the donor of DM 2,000,000 claiming he had given his word of honour and the then party chairman Wolfgang Schäuble, Kohl's hand-picked successor, who wasn't cooperative either), Merkel criticized her former mentor, Kohl, and advocated a fresh start for the party without him. She was elected to replace Schäuble, becoming the first female chair of her party, on 10 April 2000. Her election surprised many observers, as her personality offered a contrast to the party she had been chosen to lead; Merkel is a Protestant, originating from predominantly Protestant northern Germany, while the CDU is a male-dominated, socially conservative party with strongholds in western and southern Germany, and the Bavarian sister party, the CSU, has deep Catholic roots.

Following Merkel's election as CDU leader, she enjoyed considerable popularity among the German population and was favoured by many Germans to become Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's challenger in the 2002 election. However, she did not receive enough support in her own party and particularly its sister party (the Bavarian Christian Social Union, or CSU), and was subsequently out-manoeuvred politically by CSU leader Edmund Stoiber, to whom she eventually ceded the privilege of challenging Schröder; however, he squandered a large lead in the opinion polls to lose the election by a razor-thin margin. After Stoiber's defeat in 2002, in addition to her role as CDU chairwoman, Merkel became leader of the conservative opposition in the lower house of the German parliament, the Bundestag. Her rival, Friedrich Merz, who had held the post of parliamentary leader prior to the 2002 election, was eased out to make way for Merkel.^{[citation needed]}

Merkel supported a substantial reform agenda concerning Germany's economic and social system and was considered to be more pro-market than her own party (the CDU); she advocated changes to German labour law, specifically removing barriers to laying off employees and increasing the allowed number of work hours in a week, arguing that existing laws made the country less competitive because companies cannot easily control labour costs at times when business is slow.^[20]

Merkel argued for Germany's nuclear power to be phased out less quickly than the Schröder administration had planned.^[21]

Merkel advocated a strong transatlantic partnership and German-American friendship. In the spring of 2003, defying strong public opposition, Merkel came out in favour of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, describing it as "unavoidable" and accusing Chancellor Gerhard Schröder of anti-Americanism. She criticised the government's support for the accession of Turkey to the European Union and favoured a "privileged partnership" instead. In doing so, she reflected public opinion that grew more hostile toward Turkish membership of the European Union.^[22]

Path to election[link]

On 30 May 2005, Merkel won the CDU/CSU nomination as challenger to Chancellor Gerhard Schröder of the SPD in the 2005 national elections. Her party began the campaign with a 21 point lead over the SPD in national opinion polls, although her personal popularity lagged behind that of the incumbent. However, the CDU/CSU campaign suffered^{[citation needed]} when Merkel, having made economic competence central to the CDU's platform, confused gross and net income twice during a televised debate. She regained some momentum after she announced that she would appoint Paul Kirchhof, a former judge at the German Constitutional Court and leading fiscal policy expert, as Minister of Finance.^{[citation needed]}

Merkel and the CDU lost ground after Kirchhof proposed the introduction of a flat tax in Germany, again undermining the party's broad appeal on economic affairs and convincing many voters that the CDU's platform of deregulation was designed to benefit only the rich. This was compounded by Merkel proposing to increase VAT to reduce Germany's deficit and fill the gap in revenue from a flat tax. The SPD were able to increase their support simply by pledging not to introduce flat taxes or increase VAT. Although Merkel's standing recovered after she distanced herself from Kirchhof's proposals, she remained considerably less popular than Schröder, and the CDU's lead was down to 9% on the eve of the election.

On 18 September 2005, Merkel's CDU/CSU and Schröder's SPD went head-to-head in the national elections, with the CDU/CSU winning 35.3% (CDU 27.8%/CSU 7.5%) of the second votes to the SPD's 34.2%. Neither the SPD-Green coalition nor the CDU/CSU and its preferred coalition partners, the Free Democratic Party, held enough seats to form a majority in the Bundestag, and both Schröder and Merkel claimed victory. A grand coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD faced the challenge that both parties demanded the chancellorship. However, after three weeks of negotiations, the two parties reached a deal whereby Merkel would become Chancellor and the SPD would hold 8 of the 16 seats in the cabinet.^[23][24] The coalition deal was approved by both parties at party conferences on 14 November 2005.^[25] Merkel was elected Chancellor by the majority of delegates (397 to 217) in the newly assembled Bundestag on 22 November 2005, but 51 members of the governing coalition voted against her.^[26]

Reports had indicated that the grand coalition would pursue a mix of policies, some of which differ from Merkel's political platform as leader of the opposition and candidate for Chancellor. The coalition's intent was to cut public spending whilst increasing VAT (from 16 to 19%), social insurance contributions and the top rate of income tax.^[27]

Merkel had stated that the main aim of her government would be to reduce unemployment, and that it is this issue on which her government will be judged.^[28]

Chancellor of Germany[link]

President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama went to visit German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her husband, professor Joachim Sauer, to Rathaus in Baden-Baden, Germany.

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Angela Merkel's 2007 Speech to the European Parliament

Merkel in conversation with Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko
(7 February 2009)

On 22 November 2005, Merkel assumed the office of Chancellor of Germany following a stalemate election that resulted in a grand coalition with the SPD. She was re-elected in 2009 with a larger majority and was able to form a governing coalition with the FDP.

Foreign policy[link]

On 25 September 2007, Merkel met the 14th Dalai Lama for "private and informal talks" in Berlin in the Chancellery amid protest from China. China afterwards cancelled separate talks with German officials, including talks with Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries.^[29]

One of her priorities was to strengthen transatlantic economic relations by signing at the White House the agreement for the Transatlantic Economic Council on 30 April 2007. The Council is co-chaired by an EU and US official, and aims at removing barriers to trade in a further integrated transatlantic free trade area^[30]. This project has been described as ultra-liberal by the socialist and french politician Jean-Luc Melenchon, who fear a transfer of sovereignty from citizens to multinationals and an alignment of the European Union on the american foreign policy and institutions^[31][32].

Der Spiegel reported that tensions between Chancellor Merkel and U.S. President Barack Obama^[33] were eased during a meeting between the two leaders in June 2009. Commenting on a White House Press Conference held after the meeting, Spiegel stated, "Of course the rather more reserved chancellor couldn't really keep up with [Obama's]...charm offensive," but to reciprocate for Obama's "good natured" diplomacy, "she gave it a go...by mentioning the experiences of Obama's sister in Heidelberg, making it clear that she had read his autobiography".^[34]

Russia[link]

In 2006 Merkel expressed concern for overreliance on Russian energy, but she received little support from others in Berlin.^[35]

Iran[link]

According to the news agency Mehr (as reported in the Mail & Guardian Online and Deutsche Welle, quoting AFP), in August 2006, Merkel received a letter from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran.^[36][37] According to the reports, Merkel said that the letter contained "unacceptable" criticism of Israel and "put in question" the Jewish state's right to exist, and that therefore she would not formally respond to the letter.

Israel[link]

On 16 March 2008, Merkel arrived in Israel to mark the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state. She was greeted at the airport by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, an honor guard and many of the country's political and religious leaders, including most of the Israeli Cabinet.^[38] Until then, US President George W. Bush had been the only world leader Olmert had bestowed with the honor of greeting at the airport.^[39][40] Merkel spoke before Israel's parliament, the only foreigner who was not a head of state to have done so,^[41] although this provoked rumbles of opposition from Israeli MPs on the far right.^[42] At the time, Merkel was also both the President of the European Council and the chair of the G8. Merkel has supported Israeli diplomatic initiatives, opposing the Palestinian bid for membership at the UN. However, Merkel was offended when settlement building continued beyond the Green Line,^[43] and felt personally betrayed by the Israeli government's behavior. ^[44]

Liquidity crisis[link]

Following major falls in worldwide stock markets in September 2008, the German government stepped in to assist the mortgage company Hypo Real Estate with a bailout which was agreed on October 6, with German banks to contribute €30 billion and the Bundesbank €20 billion to a credit line.^[45]

On 4 October 2008, a Saturday, following the Irish Government's decision to guarantee all deposits in private savings accounts, a move she strongly criticized,^[46] Merkel said there were no plans for the German Government to do the same. The following day, Merkel stated that the government would guarantee private savings account deposits, after all.^[47] However, two days later, on 6 October 2008, it emerged that the pledge was simply a political move that would not be backed by legislation.^[48] Other European governments eventually either raised the limits or promised to guarantee savings in full.^[48]

India[link]

In 2011,^[49] India became the first Asian country to hold a joint cabinet meeting with Germany when Merkel visited.^[49]

Failure of multiculturalism[link]

In October 2010 Merkel told a meeting of younger members of her conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party at Potsdam that attempts to build a multicultural society in Germany had "utterly failed",^[50] stating: "The concept that we are now living side by side and are happy about it does not work"^[51] and that "we feel attached to the Christian concept of mankind, that is what defines us. Anyone who doesn't accept that is in the wrong place here."^[52] She continued to say that immigrants should integrate and adopt Germany's culture and values. This has added to a growing debate within Germany^[53] on the levels of immigration, its effect on Germany and the degree to which Muslim immigrants have integrated into German society.