05/29/2025May 29, 2025
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to be awarded Charlemagne Prize
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will be awarded the Charlemagne Prize during a ceremony in the western German city of Aachen, located near Belgium and the Netherlands.
Hundreds of guests are expected at the awards ceremony in Aachen’s city hall, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and former European Commission President .
The Charlemagne Prize is given to “individuals or institutions for their services to Europe and European unity,” according to its website.
Why is von der Leyen receiving the Charlemagne Prize?
Von der Leyen, who is 66 years old, is being commended for playing “a key role in keeping Europe united, relient and capable of action,” the awarding body said.
Von der Leyen, a German who spent much of her childhood in Belgium, stepped into the role of European Commission president in 2019.
She has been at the helm of the European Commission during some trying times for Europe, most notably the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Von der Leyen also held various ministerial roles under Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel. Most notably, von der Leyen served as Germany’s defense minister from December 2013 to July 2019.
Von der Leyen’s career not without controversy
Although von der Leyen is lauded for efforts in promoting European unity, she has also been at the center of several scandals during her career.
Earlier this month, the ruled that for von der Leyen and the European Commission to block the New York Times’ access to private texts between her and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.
The text messages between in question dated back to 2021, when the EU was trying to procure doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from the US pharmaceutical company.
Von der Leyen has also been criticized over the awarding of certain lucrative contracts without oversight during her tenure as German defense minister. Members of the German parliament, or Bundestag, have also blamed von der Leyen for not doing enough to improve the readiness of the German military during her time as defense chief.
The post Germany updates: Von der Leyen receives Charlemagne Prize appeared first on Deutsche Welle.
