Kristalina
Georgieva to quit Commission for World Bank job
A
source said the Bulgarian was frustrated with the ‘poisonous’
influence of Jean-Claude Juncker’s chief of staff.
By RYAN
HEATH 10/28/16, 4:30 PM CET Updated 10/28/16, 5:55 PM CET
Kristalina Georgieva
resigned Friday as vice president of the European Commission to take
a job as CEO of the World Bank, after becoming frustrated by the
workings at the highest level of the Commission, and fresh off a
failed bid to lead the United Nations.
Commission sources
said the Bulgarian commissioner, who has been in charge of the budget
and administrative portfolio since 2014, has offered to remain in her
Brussels post through to the end of December, before starting her
newly created position in Washington on January 2, 2017.
Günther Oettinger,
the European commissioner from Germany who currently holds the
digital portfolio, will take over Georgieva’s responsibilities,
according to a statement from the Commission.
“The work of the
European Commission must go on,” Commission President Jean-Claude
Juncker said Friday in a written statement, adding that he accepted
Georgieva’s resignation “with great regret.”
“Kristalina
Georgieva is an experienced politician for whom I have great respect
and I want to thank her for her loyal and committed work as vice
president of the European Commission,” Juncker said.
A further
reshuffling of Commission portfolios may follow in coming days,
adding additional pressure on an EU institution already beset by
crises ranging from migration to Brexit to the economy.
While not the first
member of the Juncker Commission to resign — Jonathan Hill quit his
post in the wake of the U.K.’s vote to leave the EU — Georgieva’s
departure is the first to be tied to a grievance with how the
Commission operates.
Georgieva,
effectively the Commission’s chief operating officer, has grown
increasingly frustrated with how the institution has handled such
challenges as migration, Brexit and senior appointments, according to
a Commission source close to her. In particular, the source said,
Georgieva objects to the working methods of Martin Selmayr, Juncker’s
chief of staff, and what she perceives a failure to adequately
consult on important decisions.
European
Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources Kristalina Georgieva
In her current
Commission role, Georgieva manages a €161 billion annual budget and
more than 30,000 staff | Dominick Reuter/AFP via Getty Images
The source said
Georgieva considers Selmayr to be a “poisonous” influence on the
Commission, and that she had already reached the limits of her
patience before the United Nations vote occurred.
One European
commissioner POLITICO spoke to said that while Georgieva did not
openly express criticism of Juncker or Selmayr, “from her body
language” it was clear that frustrations existed.
Georgieva’s
frustrations with Selmayr date back to spring 2015 when, according to
a senior Commission source, she accused him of interfering in her
efforts to shepherd the €315 billion Juncker Investment Plan
through the European Parliament and Council, and took a heavy-handed
role in the appointment of senior Commission officials.
In a Twitter
exchange on Friday afternoon, Georgieva responded to a congratulatory
message from Selmayr by calling him “a great partner to work with
over the last two years.”
Faced with the
prospect of another three years working for Juncker and Selmayr after
her failed U.N. bid, Georgieva decided to complete her work on the
Commission’s mid-term budget review and leave, the source said.
Georgieva has long
previous experience at the World Bank, where she rose to the rank of
vice president during a 17-year stint before her Commission job.
“Global
development is her absolute passion,” said a Commission source.
“She thought long and hard about this decision. In the end she
decided to go back to her passion. She joined the Commission in 2010
when her country needed her, but global development is her abiding
passion,” the source said, dismissing the idea that the move was
motivated by frustration with the Commission’s leadership.
“Kristalina is a
globally recognized leader with a proven track record in improving
the lives of those most in need,” said World Bank Group President
Jim Yong Kim in a written statement. A World Bank source described
Kim as ecstatic about landing Georgieva for the role.
Georgieva’s job
title will be chief executive officer of the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development and the International Development
Association, entities that focus on lending to middle-income and poor
countries. She will be based in Washington, and report directly to
Kim.
Oettinger is “one
of the few commissioners with an interest in budget talks at the
College (of Commissioners),” said a Commission source.
In her current
Commission role, Georgieva manages a €161 billion annual budget and
more than 30,000 staff.
Oettinger, who
managed the budget dossier earlier in October while Georgieva
campaigned for the U.N. post, would be the first Western European to
hold the post since 2004. It is expected that Oettinger will also
gain the title of vice president.
Oettinger is “one
of the few commissioners with an interest in budget talks at the
College (of Commissioners),” said a Commission source.
Whatever the title,
Oettinger’s new job implies a significant change from a
single-policy-focused responsibility towards a broader portfolio that
would allow him to get involved in and speak publicly on many issues.
“Oettinger looks
into his files before he speaks about an issue. That is what the
president appreciates,” a Commission source said in September, when
Oettinger temporarily took over Georgieva’s beat while she
campaigned to become U.N. secretary-general. “He spoke competently
about the EU budget during an orientation debate in College [of
Commissioners]”, the source said.
Florian Eder
contributed to this article.
Authors:
Ryan Heath
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