EU chief von der Leyen survives no-confidence vote

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, on Thursday survived a no-confidence vote to unseat her. One hundred seventy-five members of the European Parliament voted against her, but 360 voted for her, according to parliament records. Over 160 members didn’t show up to vote.

If the motion passed, von der Leyen and other European Commission members would have lost their jobs. Romanian parliament member Gheorghe Piperea proposed the motion, according to Deutsche Welle news. He brought up concerns about a lack of transparency in von der Leyen’s negotiation of COVID-19 vaccine contracts, among other issues, according to Deutsche Welle.

After the vote, von der Leyen urged European Union members to remain united amid global volatility.

What else did von der Leyen do on Thursday? The European Commission president spoke at the fourth annual Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome, Italy. Diplomats, international organizations, and investors at the event seek to strengthen Ukraine for as long as needed in the Russia-Ukraine War. Europe had signed about $2.7 billion in agreements with Ukraine, with more to come, she said. The European Commission president also announced the new European Flagship Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, a huge equity fund to be used for rebuilding homes and infrastructure. Further private sector investment in Ukraine would also occur, she said.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s story on how the U.S. Senate confirmed President Trump’s pick for FAA administrator.